The Perfect Blossom
by Bibilicious
Summary: Kitana Izanaki was the Third Hokage’s promising new protégé until a series of tragic events changed her forever. Ever since then Kita despised ninja and vowed never to complete her training or serve as a Shinobi. Can she be saved from her hatred? SasuxOC
1. Chapter 1 Bittersweet Barbeque

**Author Notes: Here's is the first chapter of my first ever Naruto fic! You can expect a lot of Kiba (he is sooo cool), and Sasuke (when the time comes) from me...**

**Feel free to message and review. I'm open to anything that will help improve my writing. But if you just want to tell me how awesome the story is, that fine too! I'd really like to know how i'm doing so far...**

**In chapter 1, we find out a little something about an old friend of the Konoha chunin... Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Other than Kitana Izanaki, I don't own anything...**

**

* * *

****Chapter 1 – Bittersweet Barbeque**

"Naruto," Sakura Haruno whispered to her team mate, "pay attention. I will create a diversion, so you will have an opportunity to strike. When I give you the signal, make your move."

Naruto Uzumaki gave her a hardly noticeable nod and looked straight forward into the space ahead of him.

"Hey look!" Sakura suddenly called out. "That store across the street has potato chips for sale!" she exclaimed as she pointed through the open door. "What!" Chouji Akimichi yelled as he spun his head towards the window to behold the miracle himself.

"Now, Naruto!" Sakura instructed the number one knuckle-headed hyperactive ninja in the Hidden Leaf village. Naruto grabbed his chopsticks in one swift movement and swiped as much barbequed meat as he could get his hands on. "Nooooo!" Chouji screamed in horror once he had seen through their deception, just to witness his beloved meat being taken from him.

"Awesome! Now give me some of that," Sakura said as she high-fived her team mate.

Ino Yamanaka laughed loudly at the stupidity of her comrade.

"That will teach him to be a greedy bastard," Kiba Inuzuka chuckled.

Chouji huffed and crossed his arms as Naruto and Sakura indulged on the spoils of their conquest. The Hidden Leaf chunin had just returned from an exhausting mission and had decided to treat themselves to some well deserved delicacies at the barbeque restaurant and in the meanwhile spend some quality time together. And they did just that. They made jokes and laughed and ate and drank, as if the duties and responsibilities of being a Shinobi didn't exist, if only for a short while. Years ago, when they had just graduated the Academy and had become genin, it had all seemed so simple. They had thought merely skills were enough to make someone a successful Shinobi. But no training in the world could have thought them what really mattered, what really gave a Shinobi power. Each of them had to learn themselves that faith, loyalty, insight and bravery weren't merely ideals or vague concepts. For Shinobi they were invaluable assets.

"Hey guys," Shikamaru Nara interrupted his friends' frivolity, "look who's here."

The chunin turned their eyes towards the doorway just in time to see a girl enter the restaurant. Her long, dark hair waved behind her as she walked inside and her dark blue eyes scanned the room for a place to sit. For a moment her eyes landed on the table were the chunin were sitting, she studied them each intently for a while, turned around and sat down at a table close her with her back facing towards them.

"I'm telling you, after all these years I still don't know what the hell her problem is," Kiba said as he looked at the girl over his shoulder.

"She used to be our friend," Naruto stated sadly. Hinata Hyuuga let her head down. "To be honest, I kind of miss her sometimes. She used to be a lot of fun," she whispered in her tiny voice. "Yeah well, I say we're a lot better off without her bipolar ass," Kiba snarled. "Don't say that," Sakura scolded him, "you know she has been through a lot. If I had been through what she went through and had lost what she has lost, I might not have been a very cheerful person either," she defended the girl, who was now nipping on some tea.

"Oh believe me, she is plenty cheerful. Just not to anybody who calls himself a Shinobi," Kiba retorted, anger evident in his voice.

"You know, I used to think that out of all of us, you got along with her best, Kiba. So what's with all the hostility?" Shikamaru inquired. Kiba snorted. "Ever since _it_ happened she hasn't said a word to me. I've tried to talk to her, comfort her, but she just gave me the cold shoulder. And eventually I grew cold," Kiba simply stated.

"What is everybody talking about? Who is she?" Sai asked with a confused expression on his face. His comrades went quiet until Sakura started talking.

"You honestly don't know who she is? That over there is Kitana Izanaki. She was the Third Hokage's pupil, his chance to redeem himself for ever training Orochimaru. She was the best this village had to offer, a true prodigy. Until tragedy struck that is. Ever since then she vowed never to complete her training, to never serve this village as a Shinobi. And she has despised all other Shinobi ever since."

"But what could've been so awful for her to take such extreme measures?" Sai pressed.

"Several things drove her to a point where she cracked. Her parents were Shinobi, elite jonin, but on an S-ranked mission they were both killed. Kita was destroyed, but she kept training. Back then she had considered it an honor to follow in her parents footsteps. But then tragedy struck again. Her best friend in this entire village betrayed the people of the Hidden Leaf, the Hokage, and Kita herself by wiping out his entire clan," Shikamaru explained.

Sai frowned. "And who was this best friend of hers?" he asked. "I think you already know," Sakura said quietly.

"It was Itachi Uchiha," Shino Aburame, who had been quiet the entire time, suddenly spoke.

"Itachi… Uchiha?" Sai repeated.

Kiba nodded and glanced over his shoulder once more. "She hasn't been the same since Itachi left the village. But still, that wasn't what really changed her. The day we lost Kita for good, was the day Orochimaru attacked our village during the Chunin Exams and murdered the Third Hokage. That day Kitana cut off all bonds with the Shinobi world, and with us," Kiba concluded in a sad voice. Sai blinked a couple of times and looked at the girl who was peacefully nipping her tea.

"I see," he mumbled, "well, that was all years ago. Maybe she's over it now, but she's just afraid to approach you after all this time. Maybe if you just go say…" Sai started, but Kiba harshly cut him off.

"You don't get it, do you? She doesn't want anything to do with us! And that's fine with me!" Kiba exclaimed as he stood up and strode out of the restaurant.

"Don't mind him," Ino tried to lighten the mood, "he is just a little sensitive when it comes to her. As Shikamaru said, they were very good friends and I don't think he ever got over the fact the she tossed him like an old shoe." Sakura and Hinata nodded in agreement and Naruto looked sadly in Kitana's direction. "Well, I'm going to give it a try anyway," Sai stated stubbornly as he got up and walked to Kitana's table, his friend anxiously watching him.

"Hi there, my name is Sai," Sai said with a smile and cocked his head to the side as he stood in front of the dark haired girl.

He stood there waiting for a reply from her, but nothing came out. He watched as she drank the last bit of her tea, placed some money on the table, got up and turned to walk away.

"Wait! Where are you going? I just wanted to know how you were doing," He called out to her.

His friends nervously followed the scene unfolding before them as Kitana suddenly stopped, slowly turned around and stood just inches away from Sai. Her cold dark blue eyes pierced Sai onyx ones as if she was trying to rip him apart just by looking at him.

"Listen carefully, whoever you are, because I am only going to say this once. I want you, and all other Shinobi for that matter, to stay the hell away from me. Come near me again and I will not be held accountable for what I will do to you. Next time you feel like acting friendly, don't. You would do well listening to your friends," she hissed in a cold, but menacing voice.

Sai just stood in front of her dumbfounded, not believing she was actually as cold as Kiba had said she was. Kitana once again turned around and made her way out of the restaurant. Sai sat back down with his friends defeated and Shikamaru gave him an encouraging pat on the shoulder.

"Look at it from the bright side," he said, "at least it wasn't about you. She would have burned anyone of us, you know." Sakura sighed. "It's a shame it has to be this way. It's a waste of talent if you ask me. She was an amazing Shinobi. And a great friend," she said quietly. Suddenly Naruto stood up. "Maybe Sai and Sakura are right," he mumbled, but his voice became stronger. "Maybe Kita isn't a lost cause. Maybe she just needs to be reminded of the good sides of being a Shinobi. Just like I haven't given up on Sasuke, I'm not giving up on Kitana. I believe that we can bring them back. Both of them."


	2. Chapter 2 The Broken Link

**Author Notes: Here's is chapter 2 of TPB! Nothing much to say about it though...**

**Again, feel free to message and review. I'm open to anything that will help improve my writing. But if you just want to tell me how awesome the story is, that fine too! I'd really like to know how i'm doing so far...**

**In chapter 2, we discover some more about Kita and her past... Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Other than Kitana Izanaki, I don't own anything...**

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**Chapter 2 – The Broken Link**

He had to think fast. They were black, and white and definitely set on messing him up if they had the chance. There were too many of them, which meant that the only way for him to stop them was by increasing in numbers himself. He smirked as he focused his chakra and made the familiar hand sign. He opened his eyes as he performed his trademark jutsu. "Multi Shadow Clone jutsu!" Clouds of smoke appeared around him and from the smoke about five dozen Narutos emerged.

"Let's get them, guys!" one of them called out, punching a fist in the air and pointing at the black and white creatures charging at them.

The clone army launched a counterattack and one by one took down their assailants, each time causing big pools of pitch-black liquid to fall to the ground.

When the clones had taken them all out, Naruto again made his hand seal, dissolving his clones in poufs of smoke.

"Good job, Naruto, Sai," he heard the voice of Kakashi Hatake say as he jumped down from the tree branch from where he had been observing their training. Sai, who had been hiding in the bushes as his ink beasts had attacked, emerged from his green shelter. "Yeah, that was a pretty good training. And you know what that means right?" he stated with a sheepish grin. Kakashi put and hand over his face and shook his head.

"Let me guess. You plan on emptying my pockets at Ichiraku's?" he said tiredly.

Naruto's eyes lit up at the mere mentioning of Ichiraku ramen. "Wow, Kakashi-sensei, you are awesome! Let's go!" he said, leaving a sweatdropping Kakashi and Sai behind him as he bolted off towards his beloved ramen.

* * *

"Thanks a bunch, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto managed to choke out whilst devouring his ninth bowl of barbeque pork ramen.

"Anything for my students," Kakashi said hesitantly as he mournfully looked in his empty wallet.

Suddenly Naruto stopped wolfing down his food and sadly lowered his head.

"What's wrong?" Sai, who sat on the other side of Kakashi, asked. "It's nothing," Naruto said quietly. "Come now, Naruto. We know you better than that," his sensei said, looking at him closely with his exposed eye. Naruto sighed deeply before answering. "I was just thinking about Sasuke," he replied and tightened his grip on his chopsticks. "I just hope that someday we'll be able to bring him back where he belongs. I'll do anything it takes to bring him back."

Kakashi took a deep breath and then exhaled deeply. "I know, Naruto. I've been thinking a lot about Sasuke lately. I can't help but feel I should have done more to keep him in the village. Maybe if he had gotten the support he needed, he would've realized that the strength he sought out so desperately had been inside him all along," he said, his voice charge with regret. "But we did support him, didn't we? What more could we have done?" Naruto asked in frustration.

"It wasn't our support he needed," the Copy Ninja replied. "Then who?" Naruto inquired confusedly. Kakashi closed his eye as he took a drink of his sake. "The one person that could have put his mind at ease back then, was the person closest to him," he finally answered.

"Kita," Naruto whispered.

"But then why didn't she?" Sai turned to listen in on the conversation.

"Even though they had always been friends, ever since Itachi left Kitana has for some reason kept her distance from Sasuke," Kakashi explained. Sai frowned and had some more ramen from the bowl in front of him. "Maybe she felt betrayed by Itachi and Sasuke just reminded her too much of his brother," he said in-between mouthfuls. "I don't think that was it," Kakashi responded, "she has never shown any anger whatsoever directed towards Itachi. And at that point it was only Sasuke who she was avoiding. I think Kitana might have known something back then that we didn't."

* * *

"Now, I need you to lay very still for me, Nini. Can you do that?" Kitana asked the scared little girl that laid out on the operating table in front of her. "This won't hurt one bit," she reassured child when she saw the terrified expression in her big brown eyes.

Nini hesitantly nodded as Kitana smiled down upon her.

"Good. Don't be scared. You're in good hands now," Kitana said as she washed her hands in the bowl that she had set up on the small table next to her. She placed her hands slightly above Nini's body and slowly moved them down towards her legs. She positioned her hands right above Nini's left shin and closed her eyes.

Slowly and gradually she let fixed amounts of her chakra flow to her hands, carefully molding it into the desired state with her mind. Once she was satisfied with the result, she let her chakra flow gently into Nini's tiny body.

"What are you doing?" Nini's fragile voice sounded suddenly.

Kitana smiled at her reassuringly. "It's fairly simple really," she replied slowly, careful not to break her concentration, "I possess water-type and earth-type chakra, which I can use to perform certain techniques." Nini frowned and tiny wrinkles crept on her forehead. "What kind of techniques?" she asked. Kitana didn't respond at first. With closed eyes she focused on the hard parts of Nini's leg, she sensed were the bone was positioned and little by little moved her chakra towards it. Again she started to manipulate her chakra, bending it and kneading it until it was just right.

"The technique I use requires a lot of concentration. I use my affinity for water to transform my chakra into water, enabling it to enter the human body that consists for seventy percent of water. Once I am inside I use my affinity for earth to detect the minerals inside the body, in this case your bones. By comparing the densities of the minerals I can detect fractures and then use my earth-chakra to heal them." Nini's eyes grew wide as she gazed at Kitana in awe.

"Heal them? But How?" she inquired.

Kitana smiled softly. "I transform my chakra to have the same mineral composition as the bone and incorporate it in the fracture in order to mend it," she replied. "Now, I need you be very still, Nini. Right now I really need to focus."

* * *

Kitana wiped the sweat from her forehead and let herself plop down in a chair as she breathed heavily. She was always exhausted at the end of the day. She made it all sound so simple when she explained her healing technique to Nini, but the reality was there was a lot more to it. Sure, the principle was fairly straightforward, but the execution required a lot of skill and discipline. It cost her a great deal of energy to concentrate on her chakra and manipulate its nature, especially once it was inside a body. The host's defense mechanisms were constantly trying to expel her chakra from the body and it took a lot of effort to overcome that.

"Kita!" she heard a small voice call out to her. She opened her eyes to see Nini wobbling towards her on her crutches as her parents followed her.

"How are you feeling?" Kitana asked as she gently stroked the little girl's hair.

"I'm a lot better! You were right, it didn't hurt one bit," Nini chimed happily and beamed up at Kitana. "Thank you so much, Kita," a woman's voice said.

Kitana looked to see Nini's mother smiling down at her. "It's my pleasure. We couldn't let your little girl sit around with a broken leg, could we?" she replied, winking at her patient. "Just promise me you'll be careful the first few days and come back next week for a follow-up," she added.

"I promise," Nini said in a serious tone as she solemnly held up her left hand. "Let's go home now, sweetie," her father said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Okay, daddy. Bye, Kita. And thanks again!" she said with a smile as she waved and walked towards the door with her parents. But before she stepped out, she turned around and looked at Kitana with sparkling eyes.

"You know, up until now I always wanted to be teacher as a grown up, but I don't want that anymore. I want to go to the Academy and be an awesome Shinobi just like you," she said, determination evident in her voice.

Kitana's eyes grew dark and she turned her head away from the door.

"Come, Nini, we must go," her mother said nervously as she quickly ushered her daughter outside, all the while desperately avoiding Kitana's gaze.

After they had left, Kitana stood up and walked towards the window of her small clinic. She had been healing people fulltime for the past three years. She had figured that even though she might not have wanted to be a Shinobi anymore, she still felt a strong need to help the people of the Hidden Leaf. She had decided to use her abilities to tend only to civilians, but never Shinobi. They had their own to take care of them. She refused to be part of the world that had taken everything she held dear from her. Her family, her closest friend and her sensei. The Third Hokage had been her last link to Shinobi world and the day he died that link broke.

Kitana sighed deeply as she looked out the window at the village and the people in it. Her eyes traveled across the streets as she saw her old friends Shino, Hinata, Kiba and his dog Akamaru pass by. Kitana averted her eyes from them and looked up at the Hokage faces carved in the mountains.

"Sensei," she whispered as her eyes trailed the features of the Third's face. Her heart rate sped up and her breathing became unstable as the image of her lifeless mentor reappeared before her eyes. He had been more than merely a teacher to her. When her parents had died, he had taken her in, loved her like she was his own and had always guided her on her path of life.

"But he is not here to do that anymore," she scolded herself, "now you only have yourself to depend on."


	3. Chapter 3 Midnight Blues

**Author Notes: Here's is chapter 3 of TPB! Nothing much to say about it though...**

**Again, feel free to message and review. I'm open to anything that will help improve my writing. But if you just want to tell me how awesome the story is, that fine too! I'd really like to know how i'm doing so far...**

**In chapter 2, Naruto, Kiba and Hinata run into some trouble and are saved by someone unexpected... And finally some SASUKE!! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Other than Kitana Izanaki, I don't own anything...**

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****Chapter 3 – Midnight Blues**

Sasuke Uchiha sat on a log, staring blankly into the flames of the small fire he and his companions had started to keep themselves warm in the darkness of a cold autumn night.

"Oh man, I'm bored to death. When am I going to get some action around here?" Suigetsu complained as he lay on the ground, scribbling random things in the sand with a stick.

Sasuke ignored him and kept his eyes fixed on the flames and their elegant movements in the wind. It almost seemed like they were dancing and it was peaceful to behold.

"Sa-su-keeee," he heard a seductive voice say from behind him.

He didn't have to turn around in order for him to know who it was. He sensed her sitting down on the other end of his log and felt her sliding closer towards him. Too close for his liking. "Sasuke, would you like to take a walk with me?" Karin asked gingerly as she glomped his left arm. "That's not a bad idea," Suigetsu said as he looked up at Sasuke, "let's take a walk." Karin bent over, grabbed a pebble from the ground and threw it at Suigetsu. She had aimed pretty well and it hit him square in the face.

"You were not invited! This is going to be a private activity for me and Sasuke," she yelled and sat back down to once again clamp onto the poor Uchiha's arm.

"Let go of me," Sasuke said his usually cold voice, his eyes never wandering away from the fire.

"But Sasuke…" Karin started, but he quickly cut her off.

"I told you before not to come so close to me. If you feel like taking a walk, by all means do so, but do it without me," he stated calmly. Karin huffed, crossed her arms as she stood abruptly and stomped of into the forest.

Suigetsu snickered while he watched her retreat and carefully touched the bump that was forming were she had hit him with the rock.

"You do need to explain to me why you keep doing this," he told Sasuke as he sat up straight. "She is annoying," his comrade stated bluntly. Suigetsu bared his pointy teeth as he chuckled and shook his head. "It isn't just her, you know. Are you trying to tell me you find _all_ girls to be annoying?" he asked. Sasuke closed his eyes briefly before responding. "No, not all of them. Just most."

* * *

Even though it was already late and there was nobody to accompany her, Kitana decided to go into the forest near the village gate to collect some of the medicinal herbs she used for the treatments in her clinic. It was dark under the trees as only a few streams of moonlight shone through the thick roof of leaves above her. She would gather the herbs she needed quickly and then return to the safety and warm comfort of her home as soon as possible.

She was almost ready to head back to the village, when the rustling of some leaves in the distance caught her attention. And although her head was telling her to go home immediately, there was another feeling inside of her that coerced her to walk towards the noise in order to find out what it was.

When she got closer, she could distinguish four different voices, one of which sounded terrified. Kitana put her herb basket down on the ground as she hid behind some bushes, allowing herself to size up the situation.

"You don't have to die here. All you need to do is give us the scroll," a dark, raspy voice said.

"N-never," a shaky voice hesitantly responded.

"Now is not the time for being brave. We will kill you if we have to. We _will_ have that scroll," another male voice said. "We cannot do that. If you wish to kill us, then so be it. We will not surrender the scroll," the fourth voice spoke. Kitana couldn't help but wonder what this scroll was they were talking about. Whatever information it contained must have been important to both sides.

"Then you leave us no choice," a fifth voice said. This voice was deep, low. And as this man spoke, Kitana could almost feel the vibration of his voice flow throughout her body. It ran shivers up her spine and not in a good way. Kitana closed her eyes as she evaluated the situation. Five different voices, four of which were definitely male and one, the shaky one, most likely female. Three men on the same side trying to take a scroll with unknown content from the other two.

Kitana stealthily crawled a few feet away, wanting to peek through the bushes in order to see what was happening.

Two of the three assailants marched towards their prey, their kunai knives in their hands ready for a swift strike. Judging by their headbands, they were Shinobi from the Village Hidden in the Rain. But just before they had a chance to use their blades, four silhouettes bolted from out the bushes and landed in front of the man and woman on the ground.

"We can't let you do that," a voice that Kitana knew all too well spoke. It was Naruto's.

"Yeah, you'll be sorry you ever tried to mess with the Hidden Leaf's business," Kiba snarled and Akamaru barked in agreement.

"Uhm, guys, let's just be careful. We don't know what they are capable of," Kitana heard Hinata's soft voice say.

"You have got to be kidding me! This is what the Great Leaf Village sends to stop us? That's just insulting," one of the men chuckled. He was tall and toned, but not muscular, so whatever jutsu he used probably didn't require a lot of physical strength. "Don't you even dare to underestimate us! I'll show you," Naruto snapped as he charged towards them. "Naruto, wait!" Kiba and Hinata called out in unison, but it was too late.

Kitana softly sighed at Naruto's never-ending recklessness and watched as he tried to lay a punch on the Rain Shinobi. But before he could, his opponent rapidly created a series of hand seals, moving his hands too fast for Kitana to memorize which ones, and smirked. "Ninja art, Ice-solation jutsu," he exclaimed as he stretched his arm out to Naruto and closed his hand into a fist. Hinata and Kiba watched in horror as an icy cocoon closed itself around Naruto, eventually trapping him inside.

"Naruto!" Hinata yelled.

Kiba grit his teeth, exposing his sharp canines, and Akamaru snarled at the triumphantly smirking Rain ninja. "Let's see. Which one of you squirts will be next?" he contemplated out loud as his finger went back and forth between Kiba to Hinata. "Why you…" Kiba muttered as he prepared himself for an attack. "Kiba, no!" Hinata protested, but it was too late. The Rain Shinobi once again did his hand signs and stretched his arm to execute the jutsu. "Shit," Kiba muttered when he realized the predicament he was in, "I really need to start thinking these things through."

He braced himself to be enveloped by the ice, but the cold never came.

"Hinata? Did you get him?" Kiba asked confusedly as he stood still.

"I-I-It wasn't me, Kiba," Hinata choked out.

And indeed, when Kiba turned his head, he found his team mate standing where he had last seen her. He spun around ready to see what his opponent had up his sleeve, only to find out that he wasn't moving. "What the hell…" Kiba murmured to himself.

"Hey, what the hell is going on? Hey, guys, help me. I can't move. I can't move! Why can't I move?" the Ice user yelped in panic.

"Because _I _won't let you," a calm voice came from behind the bushes.

"Who are you?" the second Rain Shinobi snapped. "Show yourself." Slowly a female figure emerged onto the clearing where the showdown was taking place. "No fucking way," Kiba said disbelievingly as he stared at the girl in front of him. "You?"

Kitana closed her eyes, opened them again and dangerously looked at the three Rain Village ninja. "I am less kind than these losers over here. I'm giving you one chance. Once chance of leaving this place while you're still breathing. If I were you, I would take it," she stated calmly.

"You've got a lot of nerve little girl. We're supposed to be scared of you? You don't even wear a head band," the second ninja mocked her. Kitana smirked and shifted her weight to her left leg. "I don't need to wear a headband in order for me to know that I'm better than you," she said nonchalantly while studying her nails. The Shinobi's chest heaved up and down and as rage built up inside him, he ran for Kitana in an impulse. But just before he could get to her, he froze where he stood.

"Is there a problem?" Kitana asked innocently. "What did you do to me?" he screamed in fear. Kitana crossed her arms. "Nothing compared to what you're going to do to yourself," she said darkly.

Kiba and Hinata watched as the Shinobi took two kunai from his weapon pouch and held one to his throat and the other to his stomach. His eyes shifted desperately between his comrades and Kitana as sweat drops of fear pearled on his forehead.

"That's enough," the cool and collected voice of the third Rain Shinobi, who had been carefully observing the confrontation, sounded suddenly. "We will do as you wish and leave," he said as he gazed at Kitana intently. "What? Takeo, our mission is to obtain the scroll. If we return without it..." the first Rain ninja argued, but his comrade interrupted. "Be quiet, Mitsuo," he cut him off and turned his gaze back to Kitana, "we will leave now."

"Not so fast," Kitana chuckled, "first release that idiot over there," she said with a nod towards Naruto, who was still trapped in Mitsuo's Ice-solation jutsu.

"I would love to, but, uhm… I can't move!" Mitsuo yelled furiously.

"My bad," Kitana snickered, closed her eyes and opened them again immediately.

When she did, both Mitsuo and the other Rain Shinobi that had been immobilized, fell to the ground with a dull thud. "Now release the brainless idiot," she commanded. Mitsuo's eyes burned with anger, but he nevertheless raised his hands, quickly made a couple of hand signs and slowly but surely Naruto's icy prison began to crumble. "Now, Mitsuo, Hisoka, let's go," Takeo said to this team mates.

"We will meet again, little girl," Mitsuo hissed as he pointed at Kitana before they disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

Sasuke enjoyed the silence as he still sat on his log, staring up at the dark blue, starlit sky. Suigetsu and Karin had been engaged in their usual bickering until they had both grown tired and had called it a day, and he for one was thankful they finally were sound asleep. Now he just sat there, admiring the stars. The night sky always calmed him, it soothed him, always put his mind at ease no matter how troubled it was. If only for a moment.

"Who is she?" a voice behind him asked suddenly.

"Who is who?" Sasuke retorted, still gazing up at the endless skies.

"The girl you're thinking about when you're staring at the stars of course," Jugo chuckled as he sat down next to Sasuke.

"What makes you think there is a girl?" Sasuke rebutted. Jugo shrugged and turned to glance at his companion. "Hmmm, I don't know. It's just a hunch," he replied with a smile. Sasuke didn't respond. Jugo nodded curtly, stood up from the log and turned to walk off.

"Her eyes were just like the midnight sky," he heard Sasuke say and sat back down. When he looked at his friend he spotted a faint smile gracing his lips as he spoke. "They were the darkest of blue and yet they always sparkled as if they were lit up by billions of shining stars. I haven't seen those eyes for years," he said, sadness seeping into his voice as he gently stroke the handle of his katana. "Were the two of you close?" Jugo inquired, causing Sasuke to snort. "I don't know if 'close' is the right word. I guess we used to be. But things changed. They always do," he replied bitterly.

"Well, who knows," Jugo tried to cheer him up, "maybe you will see those eyes again sometime soon. But for now you'll just have to do with the sky."

* * *

Naruto's teeth clattered as he rubbed his arms trying to warm himself up. "Uhm, Naruto, are you okay?"Hinata asked worriedly. Naruto gritted his teeth and stared into the darkness of the forest. "Just wait till I get my hands on that guy," he snarled dangerously. "Hey, how did I get out of there in the first place? Did you guys get him?" he asked with a sheepish smile plastered across his face.

"Not exactly," Kiba responded as he scratched the back of his head. "She did," Hinata said as she pointed to Naruto's left.

"Her?" He exclaimed, not believing his eyes.

"Jeesh, don't bother thanking me," Kitana spat as she crossed her arms and looked the other way.

"What where you doing out here in the first place?" Kiba snapped.

"That's none of your business Dog Boy!" Kitana yelled back at him.

"Uhm, guys," Hinata's tiny voice interrupted them, "we still have to escort the messengers to the Hokage, remember?" Kiba, Naruto and Kitana turned to the man and woman who where still kneeling on the ground holding onto each other for dear life.

The man stood up slowly and walked towards them, followed by the woman. "You are Leaf Shinobi aren't you? Did the Hokage send you to protect us?" he asked, still a little cautious. Hinata nodded. "Very well," he said and sighed deeply in relief. "Then I'm glad you're here. My name is Yori and this is Shizuka," he continued, pointing at the woman who curtly nodded at them.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet the both of you, but let's not waste any more time out here. We'll take you to see the Hokage right away," Kiba said and Yori nodded in understanding.

As the group started to make way to leave, Kitana was in no hurry to join them. "Aren't you coming?" Yori asked her confusedly. "No," was her simple reply. Yori turned to the others. "But aren't you guys supposed to escort us?" Kitana sighed as she retrieved her herb basket from behind the bushes. "They are. I'm not. I am not a Shinobi," she responded harshly.

"Will you stop saying that?" Naruto exclaimed. "It doesn't matter whether or not you want to be a Shinobi. It's who you are! You didn't have to come out and save us back there, but for some reason you did. And that reason is really simple. After all you've been through, you've always been and always will be a ninja. There's no use in fighting it, Kita," he practically yelled at her.

"Stop it! I did what I did because your idiocy would have gotten two innocent people killed. I've already sacrificed everything for the Shinobi world and look where it has gotten me. I'm left with nothing and nobody," Kitana retorted.

"Is that so?" Kiba interfered. "You had me. I tried to be your friend when you most needed one. I tried to reach out to you, to be there for you and you just bitchslapped me in the face!" he yelled as his eyes bore deeply into Kitana dark blue ones.

She opened her mouth to say something, but decided against it and swiftly averted her eyes.

"Kita, I'm alone as well," Naruto said sadly, "but hating people because of it won't get me anywhere. And even though bad things may happen, I am never going to turn my back on my friends or our village. Believe whatever you want, but I know you are a true Shinobi. That's why you've been healing civilians in your clinic for the past years and that's why you saved us and these people. Just think about it. And when you have, know that you can always come back to us."


	4. Chapter 4 The Past Revisited

**Author Notes: Here's is chapter 4 of TPB! To those of you that pay attention, the Third Hokage's quote about the perfect blossom may sound familiar. It's my way of giving a big, fat wink to one of my favorite movies: The Last Samurai (Kastumoto rulesss!!)...**

**Again, feel free to message and review. I'm open to anything that will help improve my writing. But if you just want to tell me how awesome the story is, that fine too! I'd really like to know how i'm doing so far...**

**A special thanks to mary for the review!! It is very much appreciated...**

**In chapter 4, Kitana finds some old keepsakes and Kiba welcomes an unexpected guest... Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Other than Kitana Izanaki, I don't own anything...**

**PS. A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!! I hope that 2010 will be a creative and inspirational year for all of you...**

* * *

**Chapter 4 – The Past Revisited**

Kitana closed the door of her house behind her, put her herb basket on the kitchen table and stood there for a while in front of the window, looking up at the stars.

That Naruto had some nerves to be talking to her like that, acting like he had her all figured out. Maybe there was a time when she had been a Shinobi, who had dedicated her whole being to serving and protecting the village Hidden in the Leaves, but those days had long passed. But even though the Shinobi world had cost her so much, she had to admit that at times she missed it. She missed the mission, the action, the sense of being needed, but most of all her friends.

She sighed deeply and slowly walked into her bedroom, opened her closet and kneeled down before it. She leaned forward as her hands searched the bottom until they found something in the far back corner and pulled it out towards her. Kitana lifted up a long box in her hands, blew off some of the dust that had gathered on top of the lit and sneezed as some of it twirled into her nose. She sighed again while she put the box back down, took off the lit and carefully grabbed the first thing she saw lying in front of her.

* * *

"_You've called for me, Sensei?" Kitana asked as she walked in__to the Third Hokage's office. _

_"Yes, I have, Kita," the Hokage said, staring out of the window at the village before him. "I asked for you to come, because I have a gift for you," he continued and turned around to his student with a warm smile. "A gift? For me?" Kitana asked, anticipation radiating from her face. "Yes, Kita, go on and open it," he chuckled as he pointed to the slim, rectangular box lying on his desk. Kitana almost skipped to the desk and anxiously ripped open her gift._

"_A katana? Sensei, it's amazing," Kitana beamed up at her teacher as she grabbed hold of the handle and slowly unsheathed the sword.__"Read the inscription," her sensei responded with an encouraging nod. Kitana frowned and read the words that were etched onto the base of the blade. _

_"'I belong to the perfect blossom'. I don't understand, Hiruzen-sensei. What is the perfect blossom?" she asked confusedly. _

_The Hokage smiled softly and motioned for his student to come to him. Kitana studied him carefully as she went to join him by the window._

"_The perfect blossom is a rare thing, Kitana. A man can spend his life searching for it, and yet it would not be a wasted life," he spoke slowly. "But sensei, I still don't understand," Kitana argued. The Hokage sighed deeply. "We are all born as no more than buds, Kita. And during the course of life those buds are nourished by experience so they can grow and eventually blossom," Kitana watched as her mentor briefly paused before continuing. "We as people all have a natural tendency to seek out the most beautiful blossoms, and surround ourselves with them. A long time ago I nurtured a bud, taught it, cared for it, but it grew out of control and was eventually lost to me."_

"_I had had high hopes for this bud, but I was greatly disappointed. For years it haunted me, ate at me, until something happened," the Hokage said and looked sideward his student. "What happened?" she asked. _

_"You happened," he said with a smile as he placed a gentle hand on Kitana's shoulder. "You became my new bud. My hope now rests with you," he stated solemnly. _

_Kitana smiled up at her sensei and made a slight bow. "It is an honor for you to think of me that way, Hiruzen-sensei. I can only pray that I won't disappoint you as well," she said. _

_"That is impossible," the Hokage chuckled, "you can never disappoint me. You may not have fully blossomed yet, but when you do you will be nothing short of perfect."_

* * *

Kitana smiled, holding her precious katana close to her chest. It had been her signature weapon during the many missions she had been sent on. As long as she had it with her, it felt like her sensei was right by her side. It made her step up her game, go that extra mile just to make him proud. Kitana unsheathed the blade and stared at the etching for a while. She then retracted the katana in the sheath and put it back in the box.

She flinched when her finger scrapped something sharp. She carefully took it out of the box, only to see a shuriken stained with a drop of her blood. Kitana sucked a small amount off blood of her index finger and smiled as yet another memory came back.

* * *

"_Hey, Sasuke!" she called out to her friend in the distance. _

_The young Uchiha turned around and a wide smile spread across his face as soon as he saw her. "Hi, Kita," he replied as he waved at her. _

_"Sasuke, I was wondering __if maybe you wanted to hang out with me," she panted when she had finally caught up with him, her arms holding on to her legs as she leaned forward. "I can't," he said regretfully, "I have some more shuriken practice to do if I want to be as good as Itachi is." Kitana snorted and crossed her arms defiantly. "You are always practicing to be as good as Itachi is. You're all work, no fun. Even your brother loosens up every now and then. Even he has time for me between his missions. I'm starting to think he's more fun than you are," she retorted and stuck out her tongue._

_Sasuke huffed and he pulled his lips up in a smirk. "Take that back, Kita," he said darkly. _

_"Why don't you make me?" Kitana provoked him, only to have her friend jump her as he started to tickle her. _

_"Ahh! Sa-Sa-Sasukeeeee! S-stop, you're k-k-k-killing me," she screamed in-between laughter while she laid out on the grass with Sasuke straddled over her. But Sasuke didn't stop. "Admit that I'm more fun than my brother," he pressed as he continued to assault the girl underneath him. "Okay, okay, you win. You are way more fun than your brother," she cried and finally the onslaught stopped. _

_They both laughed as they fell back onto the soft grass and just laid next to each other._

"_I hope I'm not interrupting you two lovebirds," a calm voice came from behind them. Sasuke bolted up to see who it was and found it to be his brother. _

_"Lovebirds?" Kita asked as she raised an eyebrow. _

_"Us?" Sasuke aided her. _

_"Ew!" they both exclaimed looking at one another. _

_Itachi Uchiha chuckled as he looked at his younger brother and the little girl that had more in common with him than anyone else in his own age group. Other than Shisui of course. "That's what you say now. Just wait until you're both a little older," he said with a smile, "and who knows, maybe in a few years Sasuke will ask you to marry him, Kita" Itachi teased as he poked his little brother in the head._

* * *

"Sasuke," Kitana whispered as she gently traced the edges of the shuriken in her hands.

For years she had tried to banish him from her thoughts, to forget the bonds they once shared together. She had loved Sasuke beyond her understanding at the time, but it was her love for his brother that had put a strain on whatever relationship it was they had had. It was because of the promise she made Itachi that she had broken her friendship with his little brother, who had never understood why she insisted on keeping her distance from him. He, however, had no idea that staying away from him had been just as hard on her as it had been on him. And the worst thing was that she would never be able to explain it.

* * *

_Itachi stood by the pond out in the forest, waiting for his best friend to arrive._

_"Itachi, there you are! You asked for me to come. Listen, I heard about Shisui and I'm so sorry. I know he was your best f…__" Kitana started to ramble, but the Uchiha cut her off. _

_"Yes, what happened to Shisui is tragic, but there are more important things on my mind right now, Kita. You trust me, don't you?" he asked her pressingly. Kitana nodded vigorously. "And you love me, right?" Itachi continued. "Of course I do," Kitana giggled nervously. "And you would always defend me, wouldn't you? Can I count on you no matter what?" he inquired. Kitana squinted and crossed her arms as she frowned. "I'm not sure I like where this is going," she stated bluntly. Itachi sighed and looked at his friend intently with his Sharingan eyes. _

_"Kita, I need to tell you something important."_

* * *

Kitana gulped and put the shuriken back where she had got it, when her hands touched something else. It was a picture. One of her and Kiba Inuzuka.

It was taken outside of his house at the Inuzuka compound by his sister. As Kitana was sitting on Kiba's back, he had turned his head to look up at her. They were both laughing and Akamaru, who hadn't been as big back then as he was today, held on to her shoulder for dear life. After Itachi had left her, Kiba had become her best friend. They did everything together. They trained, went out for food and had their mischievous streaks every now and then.

It hadn't been easy to cut her bonds with Sasuke, but she had done it knowing it was the best for both of them.

And she had had difficulty ending her friendship with the others as well some years later.

But shunning Kiba had been almost unbearable. At first he kept trying to approach her, pressuring her to tell him what was bothering her. But as she kept ignoring him, slowly but surely the looks he gave her started to change. First it had been pity, then hurt, followed by frustration and ending with anger. An anger that she continued to see in his eyes until earlier that night.

She thought back of Kiba's eyes when they had had their run-in in the forest and what he said to her.

'You had me. I tried to be your friend when you most needed one. I tried to reach out to you, to be there for you and you just bitchslapped me in the face,' she heard his words echo in her head.

And for the first time in three years, Kitana was overwhelmed with guilt. All this time she had considered it her right to be angry with the world and everyone in it. "I was so busy feeling hurt, that I didn't even care what I was doing to anyone else," she whispered to herself. But maybe it wasn't too late. Maybe, by some miracle, she was still able to fix this.

* * *

"Who do you think that could be?" Tsume Inuzuka asked her daughter as she heard someone knock on the front door. Hana Inuzuka stood up from the dinner table, where they had been sitting and talking, to see who it was. When she opened the door on a small crack and looked outside, her eyes grew big once she had recognized the girl in front of her.

"Hello, Hana. Is Kiba home?" she asked, her voice dead serious.

"He's upstairs sleeping. I think it would be best if you came back in the morning," Hana replied, surprise evident in her voice. The girl nodded in understanding and turned to walk away. But after a few steps she spun back around.

"On second thought, I don't think this can wait until morning," she answered.

* * *

Kiba had been sound asleep, but he slowly woke up as he felt a presence in his room.

"Who's there?" he asked drowsily as his eyes tried to adjust to the darkness surrounding him. He glanced at his alarm clock and saw it was only 3:13 in the morning. Who in the world would come see him at such an ungodly hour?

"Kiba…" a soft voice sounded from the dark.

It wasn't his mother's or his sister's, but it did sound strangely familiar. "Who are you and what do you want from me?" he snarled. He tensed up when he heard footsteps approaching his bed and felt the mattress dent slightly when the person sat down next to him and leaned closer towards him. His uninvited guest was so close, that Kiba was overwhelmed by a familiar scent. Kiba's heart raced in his chest and he pressed his back against the bedpost when his visitor whispered in his ear. "I'm sorry, Kiba."

As soon as he had caught her scent, he had known who it was. And even though he had dreamed for her to come for him on countless nights, now that she was here he couldn't believe it. "Am I dreaming?" he asked softly. "This is not a dream," she whispered back as she put her lips to his ear. "Then what are you doing here?" he replied, his voice sharper than he had intended it to be. But he wasn't going to feel sorry for her. She was the one that had some explaining to do.

"I'm here to apologize, Kiba. I've thought about what you said and you were right. What I did to you wasn't fair and I have no excuse whatsoever," she said with a slightly shaky voice, which wasn't like her at all.

"And why is it that it took you three years to figure that out, Kita?" he snapped.

Kitana sighed and stood up from the bed. "I've been a little lost, Kiba," she responded as she paced through the room. "More than a little if you ask me," he muttered under his breath, though it was loud enough for Kitana to hear. "Call it whatever you want. But the bottom line is that I miss us. I miss the fun we had together, the things we used to do. I miss you," she stated in a sad voice. And then she said the words Kiba hadn't thought to ever hear from her.

"I want you back. If you'd still have me, that is."

Kiba couldn't believe this was happening. He had wanted it to happen for as long as he could remember. And now that the moment was finally there, he didn't know what to say. Should he forgive her, be her friend again, or had that ship sailed for good? While he was contemplating the best reaction, Kitana interpreted his silence as his way of passing up on her offer. She turned away sadly and started to make her way to the door. "Where are you going?" Kiba asked as he quickly stood up from his bed. Kitana turned back to him confusedly. "When you didn't respond I figured you wanted me to…" she was cut off by Kiba, who held her tightly in hug that said all. At first Kitana froze up at his touch, but slowly she surrendered to relaxation.

"Stay with me tonight," Kiba whispered as he leaned his chin on her head.

"What?" Kitana replied with shrill voice.

"You heard me," Kiba chuckled and placed a kiss on her forehead, "stay with me. We have a lot to talk about."


	5. Chapter 5 Reconciliation

**Author Notes: Finally, here's is chapter 5 of TPB! I can't believe how long it has taken me to get this one out... But the good news is I have finally recovered from my eye surgery!! So yay for me!!  
**

**Again, feel free to message and review. I'm open to anything that will help improve my writing. But if you just want to tell me how awesome the story is, that fine too! I'd really like to know how i'm doing so far...**

**In chapter 5, Tsume discovers a guest in Kiba's bedroom, the Leaf chunin get a disturbing message and Sasuke has an encounter with a mystery woman... Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Other than Kitana Izanaki, I don't own anything...**

**

* * *

**

**Chapter 5 - Reconciliation  
**

It was a beautiful day the Hidden Leaf village and Tsume stared out of her kitchen window, slowly nipping her tea. She contently looked up at an exceptionally clear sky. Only a few fluffy clouds disturbed the infinite blue of what seemed to be a floating ocean.

The sun indicated it was near noon and although Hana had set off to her clinic early in the morning, Kiba had not come down yet.

Tsume shook her head when she recollected the events of the previous night. She had been surprised to say the least when Kiba's former best friend had shown up at her door in the middle of the night.

She and Hana had waited for Kitana to come down and leave, but after an hour there still hadn't been any sign that she would be leaving.

Tsume had figured they probably had a lot to discuss and so she didn't expect her son to show his face anytime soon. Kiba might have had a tough boy image, but her son definitely needed his sleep.

An hour later however, there was still no Kiba.

Tsume sighed, walked up the stairs and opened the door to her son's bedroom.

It was dark inside. The curtains shielded the room from the sunlight and the only light to enter came from the well-lit hallway.

When she looked at the floor, she spotted a small pile of clothing near the bed with on top of it… a bra?

Tsume felt the vein in her forehead throb vigorously and her gaze swiftly shifted to the bed, where Kiba gently slept, his arm protectively wrapped around a familiar girl.

"Kiba!" her voice thundered.

Kiba jerked up into a sitting position and Kitana's eyes shot open at sound of Tsume's voice.

"Mom! I can explain. It's not what you think," Kiba started to defend himself as he jumped out of bed.

"Really?" she replied skeptically, glancing at Kiba's boxer shorts and giving Kitana a meaningful look.

"Honestly, we weren't doing… anything," Kitana aided Kiba as she swiftly got out of bed herself and stood alongside him, desperately pulling down the short T-shirt Kiba had given her to sleep in. "We were just talking yesterday and it got late and Kiba didn't want me to go home alone and I know what it looks like, but you have to believe that we did-," she rambled, but Tsume raised a hand to silence her.

"Mom, you have to believe us," Kiba pleaded.

Tsume looked at the both of them and smiled. "It's alright. I believe you. And besides, it's not as if I haven't found you in more compromising positions, Kiba," she said as she gave her son a stern look.

Kita giggled when she saw the faint blush that crept on Kiba's face.

"Just get dressed," Tsume called over her shoulder as she turned around and closed the door behind her.

* * *

"Do you think that was funny?" Kitana asked her friend and glared at him as they walked the streets of village together.

Kiba chuckled and raised his shoulders. "Come on, Kita. It was a little funny. Did you see the look on my mom's face?"

"Well I'm sorry I don't enjoy causing people to have heart attacks the way _you_ obviously do," she retorted, playfully jabbing him in the shoulder.

"Ouch! See what she's doing to me, Akamaru? Does this look like the same girl who came into my room last night begging for forgiveness?" Kiba teased. Kitana scowled, but Akamaru didn't respond and continued to lazily walk behind them.

"You think you're funny, don't you, Dog Boy? But don't worry, I _will_ have the last laugh," Kitana said darkly as they rounded a corner.

Ino, Shikamaru, Naruto and Tenten lazily leaned against a wall in the main street of the village, mainly to watch people and gossip. They might as well enjoy the time they could spend together as friends, before they'd be send their separate ways to go on missions.

"Hey, there are Kiba and Akamaru," Tenten called out. "And Kitana Izanaki?" she added confusedly, frantically pointing to their left.

"No way in hell they'd be walking around the village togeth-," Shikamaru started as he turned into the direction in which Tenten was pointing, but stopped when he saw the two people in question approaching them.

"Well, word has it that some girl came out of Kiba's house with him this morning, but no one saw her go in there. Sounds to me like she stayed over for the night," Ino whispered conspiringly.

Tenten's mouth fell open and her eyes widened in shock. "You don't think it was her, do you?"

"Well we _are_ dealing with Kiba here. That boy is capable of just about anything," Ino shrugged.

"Hey guys," Kiba said as he and Kitana joined the others.

"Hi," Kitana followed his example with a soft, hesitating tone to her voice.

"So…" Ino started mysteriously, "you two _friends_ again, huh?" Kitana raised her eyebrow and gave Kiba a sideward glance.

Kiba snickered. "Yeah, I guess we are," he stated with a sheepish grin as he put his hands behind his head.

"Kiba! You do realize what she's implying, don't you?" Kitana scolded as she jabbed him in the shoulder. He blinked a few times before a devilish smirk spread across his face. "Well we're not _that_ kind of friends. We just had a good, long talk and decided to move on from whatever happened between us in the past," he elaborated in a more serious tone.

"Does that mean we can all just be friends again?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"If you'll let me," Kitana replied in a gentle voice. "I know I've been treating you guys horribly and I have no excuse whatsoever. The fact is, you were right, Naruto. About everything you said in the forest last night, you were right. I had no right to abandon my friends just because bad things had happened to me. You guys had always been there for me. Especially you, Kiba. And Tenten," she added with a soft smile.

Out of all girls in the Leaf Village, Kitana got along with Tenten the best. She wasn't a hopeless sap like the other girls, she wasn't as boy crazy as the other girls, and she worked as hard on her Shinobi skills as Kitana did. But whenever she did have need for a girlfriend, Tenten was more than happy to fulfill that role as well.

"It's okay," the tomboy kunoichi answered, reeling her long lost friend in for a tight hug, "I knew you'd come around eventually. Sure, I admit I was disappointed and hurt at first, maybe even a little mad, but that doesn't matter now you're back!"

"Yeah, exactly. Before you know it, we'll all be out on missions together just like in the old days," Naruto exclaimed excitedly, earning him a low groan from Shikamaru.

"That sounds like a total drag," he muttered in his usual nonchalant voice.

"Uhm, about that. I'm fine with being friends with all of you guys again, but I'm not going back to being a Shinobi," Kitana stated sternly.

"But, Kita…" Naruto argued.

"Hey Bonehead, just leave it… for now," Kiba warned, the last part hardly more than a low growl, as he poked the blond idiot in the back of his head.

"You know, even though I don't mind this whole friendly reunion, why don't we head in somewhere for a few rounds?" Shikamaru boredly suggested.

"That definitely sounds like a plan," Kitana chimed as she grabbed Tenten by the arm and headed off.

* * *

Kitana smiled looking at the five young Shinobi sitting around the table contently sipping their drinks and asked herself how in the world she had managed to live without them all this time. They had taken her back into their midst without judging her, blaming her or reprimanding for anything. They just went back to having the same innocent fun they used to have years ago. It wasn't that she hadn't had any fun at all, but the people she had been hanging out with weren't nearly as great as her old comrades.

"So, Kita, I've heard you're quite popular with the young men of the village," Ino teased with smirk.

Tenten laughed at that. "As a matter of fact, I heard that too."

"Spill it!" the two girls chimed in unison.

Kitana swallowed the swig she had just taken of her drink and raised an eyebrow. "What exactly is it I am supposed to spill?" she asked gingerly.

"Everything!" Ino squealed. "Who have you been dating? I mean, you have been dating _someone_, haven't you?"

Kitana laughed heartily, seeing Ino bouncing up and down in excitement like a little girl craving to wear her gorgeous new outfit to school. However, when she didn't reply, Ino grew impatient.

"Come on, Kita. How many guys have you dated these past years?" she pressed, anticipation burning in her eyes.

"A few," was the simple response. Kitana smirked and her eyes mischievously glistened.

"Naruto!" a voice came from a few feet away from them.

Kitana shifted her gaze to the source and spotted another old friend, one that could annoy her to the extreme sometimes. It was Sakura. When they were younger, Kitana had always teased Sakura because of her feelings for a certain dark haired boy, a boy that obviously had no interest in Sakura whatsoever. And Kitana had for some reason always been pretty happy about that. That reason was far from a mystery. Although she would have never admitted it, she herself had had warm feelings for that same boy. Her friend. Sasuke.

"Naruto, you need to come with me immediately. Lady Tsuna-," Sakura cut herself off when she spotted Kitana sitting with the rest. "Kita, that's a surprise. What's going on?" she asked suspiciously.

"To make a long story short," Kiba replied before Kitana could answer," Kita is back and she's here to stay."

Sakura smiled widely. "Well, it's great to have you back." Kitana nodded in agreement.

"Uhm, Sakura, what was it you wanted to tell me?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Oh," his teammate remembered, "You need to come with me right away. Lady Tsunade wants to see us. She says it is important."

Naruto got up immediately and turned to the others. "Well, it looks like we will be going. We wouldn't want to keep Granny Tsunade waiting. See you guys later!"

* * *

It had already been a couple hours later by the time Naruto and Sakura came back from their visit to the Hokage. Kitana studied them carefully as an edgy Naruto and gloomy Sakura sat down.

"Whoa, you guys, who died?" Kiba joked, but bit his lip when he saw the frown that appeared on Sakura's face.

"Orochimaru," Naruto started to mumble slowly, "he is dead."

Kitana's eyes shot wide open. Orochimaru was dead. The man who had murdered her sensei was dead. There _was_ some justice in the world after all. All she had had to do was wait for three years in order for it to find her.

"No way," Shikamaru murmured as he narrowed his eyes. "Who killed him?"

Naruto sighed and Sakura's bottom lip trembled as she answered. "It was Sasuke."

The notion hit Kitana like a lightning bolt. The one man in the world she had wished to be dead had been killed for her by Sasuke. And even though she was well aware that he hadn't exactly done it for her, she was thankful to him nonetheless.

"We are going to look for him. And I won't give up until I bring him home," Naruto vowed, determination evident in his voice.

"How will you know where to look for him?" Ino asked worriedly, still letting the news get through to her.

"It's simple," Sakura said, her voice barely above a whisper, "now that Orochimaru is dead, there's only one thing left for him to do." Kitana's eyes grew dark and she lowered her head when Sakura continued. "It's to kill Itachi. Wherever Itachi is, that's where Sasuke will be."

Kitana shoved her chair back and jumped up from her seat. She forced a smile onto her lips as the others stared at her with a baffled look.

"I just remembered I have to meet a patient of mine back in my clinic," she explained sheepishly. Ino's eyes lit up. "Hey, I've heard about your healing. I would really like to see you do it sometime. Do you think it would be okay for me to tag along?" she asked hopefully.

Kitana lowered her head and shook it. "I don't think that would be a good idea, Ino. This particular patient is already terrified of the treatment and I don't think having an audience is going to help. Maybe some other time," she replied with a smile that didn't at all reflect what she was feeling. Ino nodded in understanding. Kitana quickly muttered some brief goodbyes to the flabbergasted Shinobi at the table, threw down some cash and bolted to the door without waiting for a reaction.

* * *

As soon as she had reached the comfort of her home, Kitana bolted into her bedroom, knelt down by her closet and pulled out a familiar box.

She had lied to the others. There was no patient. The truth was that the news of Orochimaru's death had triggered something inside of her. Or maybe it had been the knowledge that Sasuke had killed him. Eventually Kitana decided against both of them. She knew exactly that it wasn't what Sasuke had done that bothered her, it was what he was about to do.

"I've made a lot of mistakes," she said to herself, "but I know I can make it all right again."

She pulled out another box and opened it. In it laid a midnight blue qipao dress and a faint smile graced her lips as she took it out and gently caressed the soft fabric.

Kitana stood up, and spread the dress out on her bed as she slowly removed the clothes she was wearing and put on a three-quarter sleeved fishnet shirt after which she carefully slid into the qipao. It was definitely a lot tighter than it used to be, but then again it had been three years since she'd last worn it.

Once she had properly adjusted the dress, she picked up the rectangular box she had pulled from the closet before and put it on the bed. From it she retrieved a black weapon pouch that she strapped onto her right leg. She snickered for a moment when she opened it and realized that it was still fully stocked. Deep down she must have known, even back then, that she would have need for it again.

She closed her pouch and proceeded to pull two sais out of the box. She trailed her fingers slowly along the blade as if to reconnect with her long forgotten weapons. It felt strangely comforting to hold them again and it almost felt like she had rediscovered a part of herself that had been suppressed, hidden and locked away from the world. And that wasn't at all that far from the truth. Being a Shinobi was a part of her, but that didn't mean she had to surrender to that particular aspect of her being. She would do what she had to and go back to the way things were.

Once she had secured the sais around her hips, she finally caught hold of her most valued possession. Her katana. She closed her eyes as her fingers skillfully strapped the weapon onto her back almost instinctively.

Finally she pulled on some blue gloves in the shade of her dress and put on her sandals.

"This is it," she murmured and sighed as she gave her bedroom one last look, checking if she hadn't forgotten anything, "this is it."

* * *

It was in the middle of the afternoon by the time Kitana was at a safe distance from the Hidden Leaf village. She had to do this alone, without interference from anyone.

She looked around to ensure herself that she was alone and once she had, she closed her eyes, bit her thump, making a few drops of blood trickle out, and formed a series of hand signs she knew all too well.

"Summoning Jutsu!" she called out as she quickly squatted down and spread out her palm on the ground. She straightened her back while a cloud of smoke appeared. As it settled, a figure slowly emerged from the mist.

Kitana heard a low, but dangerous growl and a pair of fiery eyes glared at her. Nevertheless she stood her ground as an enormous white tiger with smoldering eyes advanced on her, quaking the earth with every step it took with its huge, strong paws.

"Forgive me, Tsuki," she pleaded as she bowed her head respectfully, "I should never have turned my back on you." She raised her head in order to look the great cat square in the eyes. "I don't know if our contract still has any meaning to you, but I called upon you because I need your help."

Tsuki didn't respond, but kept her penetrating gaze fixed on the girl in front of her.

"I know that I've betrayed our bond. You were never just an ally, you were my comrade, my friend and I truly am sorry I lost sight of that. I've made a lot of mistakes and I want make it all right again, but I can't do it alone. Will you help me?" Kitana asked humbly.

For a few moments it was completely silent. The only sound was made by the wind rustling the trees, making fallen leaves dance gracefully as they were lifted from the ground.

Kitana kept her eyes locked with Tsuki's. Still no sound, until suddenly a thundering roar erupted from the tiger's beak that could've have been heard miles and miles away.

"Perfect. I knew I could count on you," Kitana smirked.

* * *

"K-kiba, maybe you should try to relax a bit. There's probably a good explanation for all this," Hinata whispered to her teammate in her tiny voice. Kiba's head jerked in her direction at the sound of that and he scowled at her.

"Cool down, Kiba," Naruto aided the shy kunoichi, "I'm sure Kita's fine."

The short tempered dog user had been ranting for days, ever since Kitana's weird display when Naruto and Sakura had told the others about Orochimaru's demise. Nobody had seen or heard from her ever since.

Kiba growled as he, his teammates and Naruto made their way to the village gates to set off on their latest mission: finding Sasuke.

When they arrived at the gate they found Sakura, Sai, Captain Yamato and surprisingly even Kakashi already waiting for them.

"Good, you're all here," the Copy Ninja stated as he looked up from his little green book. It still amazed the Leaf chunin that a Shinobi as legendary as Kakashi could be hooked to something as dimwitted as the books of the 'Make-Out' series.

"Let's go," Yamato said and the party began to head through the gates.

"Hey, good luck you guys," the voice Kotetsu Hagane called out to them. "Yeah," his partner Izumo Kamizuki added, "I hope you find them."

"Them?" Naruto asked with a puzzled look on his face.

"Yeah, Sasuke and Kitana," Izumo replied as the two gate guardians walked up to the group.

"What are you talking about? Kita isn't with Sasuke," Kiba snapped.

Kotetsu shrugged. "I wouldn't be so sure of that. We were on guard two days ago when she left the village in quite a hurry."

Kiba huffed. "She was probably in desperate need of some medicinal herbs or something."

"Unless she gathers herbs in full combat gear, I wouldn't say so," Kotetsu snorted.

Sakura frowned. "Come to think of it, she did set off pretty quickly after she heard about Sasuke going after Itachi, and Itachi was after all her best friend. You don't think she went off to warn him, do you?" she asked nobody in particular.

"It's not impossible," Kakashi concluded with a sigh.

This could complicate things a bit. Even though Kita was the same age as his students, her skills were despite the fact she hadn't trained in a while on a whole other level. At the time of her retirement she had been a jonin and had served several missions on an ANBU squad. If she went against them, that would be most inconvenient. And something in his gut told Kakashi it wouldn't take long for them to run into her.

* * *

"I'm telling you! Can't we for once sleep in a nice town, in a warm bed, with food that is actually edible?" Suigetsu complained as he dropped his chopsticks in his bowl of particularly disgusting soup.

"Yeah well, let's see if you can do any better, asshole!" Karin exclaimed, treating Suigetsu to a fist to the head.

"Ouch, that hurt! It's not my fault you can't cook," he snarled as he stared the chakra sensor down dangerously.

Karin gritted her teeth. "Why don't you say that to my face, you pointy-toothed retard!"

"I _did_ say it to your ugly face, goggled bimbo!" he shot back.

"That's enough, you two. Calm down," came Jugo's calm voice as he lay on the ground on his back, staring up at the night sky.

"Whatever," muttered Suigetsu, "just make sure we get some entertainment soon. I'm bored to dead," he added as he prodded the fire with a stick.

"Hm, that's a plus. Just keep on dying," Karin retorted. Her eyes traveled to her right where Sasuke sat on the grass staring into the fire.

He did it every night and he had found it gave him a certain inner peace. However, it was fragile and lasted only as long as he was able to lose himself in the flames without being interrupted. He wasn't at all surprised by the affect the dancing embers had on him. His clan had after all been famous for their mastery of nature's most destructive element.

"Sa-su-keeee…" Sasuke sighed deeply when Karin glomped his arm and cooed in his ear. If he had been any less of gentleman he would've smacked her across the face. He admitted the thought had crossed his mind more than once, but he wasn't _that_ type of guy. And he refused to become one.

"Stop that," he stated emotionlessly, not even bothering to look at her.

"But Sasuke…" she pouted and moved closer towards him, sliding onto his katana in the process as it lay on the ground in between them. "Oh, can you teach me how to use this, Saaaaasuke?" she asked innocently while starting to unsheathe the blade.

Sasuke's head snapped towards her as he forcefully yanked his sword out of her hands in one swift movement. For a brief moment his cold onyx eyes were replaced by his fiery crimson Sharingan and he glared fiercely at the startled girl next to him as if he was trying to burn a hole in her. Karin sniffed and her bottom lip trembled as she let her head down.

After a few seconds he calmed down and his eyes regained their serene shade.

"Don't _ever_ touch my katana again," he said in a low dangerous voice as he turned his gaze back to the fire, retracted the blade in the sheath and carefully placed it next to him.

"Whoa, I get that she's annoying, but that was a little harsh," Suigetsu chortled. "So what's the deal with you and that blade?"

Sasuke didn't respond. He thought back to when he started to train with Orochimaru and to the point at which he was to choose a weapon. A weapon that he would master above all others. He had known straight away which one to pick. There was only one he wanted: the katana.

* * *

"_Hey__," Sasuke said coolly when he met his friend on the training field._

"_Hey, Sasuke!" Kitana chirped restlessly. "Look what I've got," she announced as she proudl__y presented him with her shiny new weapon. Sasuke frowned as she handed it to him and he carefully started to inspect it._

_The fingers of his right hand wrapped themselves around the handle as he placed his left hand firmly on the black sheath that was decorated with an image of a white tiger. He carefully unsheathed the b__lade and read the inscription at the base of it._

"_It's amazing, Kita. Where did you get it?" He asked her, obviously impressed with her new gadget._

"_It was a gift from Hiruzen-sensei. He thought it was time for me to master a single weapon," Kita explained as her friend handed back the swords._

"_But why a katana of all weapons?" he asked curiously._

_Kitana giggled. "I asked him that same question."_

"_Well…" Sasuke poked her in the shoulder, encouraging her to continue._

"_Sarutobi-sensei told me that to master a weapon, it needs to become an extension of your body. And to control your body is to have control of your weapon. He gave me the katana because our names are as one. His hope is that our bodies will be as well."_

_Sasuke thought about that for a moment. "So your body is as one with the katana, huh?"_

_Kitana gave him a nod and laughed heartily. "Not quite yet. But it will be," she added with a wink._

_Sasuke smiled back at her. "Hm. I'll remember that."_

_

* * *

_

"Well, are you going to answer?" Suigetsu pressed.

"No," Sasuke stated bluntly.

Karin stood up. "Just leave it. He's never going to open up t-, " she started, but sudden stopped talking and froze at the spot. She narrowed her eyes and frantically looked around.

"What's wrong?" Jugo asked as he came up into a sitting position.

"I sense someone coming," she whispered.

"How many are there?" Suigetsu inquired and stood up as well.

Karin frowned and closed her eyes trying to concentrate on the foreign chakra that was somewhere in their near vicinity. "By the looks of it it's just two individuals and only one of them feels human. But I can't be sure," she replied. "They stopped moving right over there," she said pointing somewhere between the trees.

"I'll check it out," said Sasuke as he stood up, grasping his katana with his left hand, and headed off in the direction Karin had indicated.

He activated his Sharingan and slowly made his way through the vegetation, paying attention to every sound and every flicker of movement, at the same time trying to sense the presence of another person.

Suddenly he stopped dead in his tracks and smirked.

"I know you're there. You might as well come out," he mocked his concealed companion.

"I wasn't hiding," a bright female voice replied from a few feet behind him. The sound of it sent shivers down his spine. He felt like he was supposed to know this voice, but he couldn't quite put a finger on it.

"Then why don't you show yourself?" he challenged.

"I was planning to," the voice answered calmly.

"Who are you?" he inquired and spun around when he felt someone approaching him. The woman who this familiar voice belonged to came closer, and he narrowed his eyes in an attempt to identify her.

"Am I to assume you don't remember who I am? I must say I'm disappointed in you, Sasuke," she stated mockingly.

"Maybe I would remember you if you stepped out into the light," he hissed menacingly.

"I thought you'd never ask," he heard her whisper in his ear from behind. Sasuke stumbled a few steps away from her in a reflex and watched as the woman stepped forward into the silver moonlight.

He frowned while he took in the image of her: her well-built body, the dark blue dress she wore, the sais strapped to her waist and the katana secured on her back. But there was something else about her that mesmerized him, something that he hadn't seen in a long time. And as soon as he looked into her deep midnight blue eyes, he knew immediately who she was.

"It has been a long time, Sasuke," she smiled when she spotted the recognition in his eyes, "too long."

He swallowed forcefully and felt his heart racing. This could not be happening. Maybe he was hallucinating. He rejected that last theory at once when she advanced on him and pressed her head against his chest.

"I've missed you so much, Sasuke," she breathed into the fabric of his shirt.

The young Uchiha didn't answer, didn't move and held his breath for a moment. He had so much to say to her and to ask her that he didn't know where to begin. She confused him just by being there and if there was something Sasuke Uchiha did not enjoy, it was being confused. But he had to admit he had missed her too, more than she could ever know, more than he could tell her, and the feeling to be with her pushed all the others to the background. Slowly all his anger and doubt and guilt and curiosity slipped away, and all he wanted was to be with her.

Sasuke closed his eyes, wrapped his arms tightly around her and pressed her body tightly against his own. He sighed and breathed in her scent as her hands grabbed hold of the back of his shirt. He moved a hand up to her cheek, caressing it and then slowly and gently lifted her chin up for her to face him.

"I've missed you too… Kita."


	6. Chapter 6 Change of Hearts

**Author Notes: Yay! Finally Chapter 6 of TPB is out!  
**

**Feel free to message and review. I'm open to anything that will help improve my writing. But if you just want to tell me how awesome the story is, that fine too! I'd really like to know how i'm doing so far...**

**In chapter 6, Kitana and Sasuke are reunited, but their rendez-vous is quickly ruined by the mistakes made in the past. Will they be able to kiss and make up? Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Other than Kitana Izanaki, I don't own anything...**

* * *

**Chapter 6 – Change of Hearts**

At that particular moment there were no words to describe what Sasuke Uchiha was feeling. All these years he had yearned for this woman to be with him, to stand by his side during all the hardships life continued to throw his way and here she was. In his arms, with no intention of leaving. He held her closer and once again took in her scent, gently stroked her arm and cherished the sensation of her skin touching his.

The last time Sasuke had seen Kitana she had been just a young girl, but now her body was more toned and developed than he remembered. As he pressed Kita's body against his own he could clearly feel just how much she had grown. And although it was dark under the thick roof of leafs, Uchiha could very well see that Kitana had curves in all the right places, curves that were accentuated by the qipao dress that somehow seemed tighter on her than it used to be.

She was beautiful to him, a true piece of art. But the most vexing were her eyes. Sasuke was completely captured by her sparkling deep blue orbs as she gazed up at him and a shiver went up his spine when Kita stood on her tip-toes and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. He smiled back at her in return and laid his hand at the back of her head tenderly as she nuzzled against his chest.

Sasuke could have stayed in that moment forever, but their peace was interrupted by the nearby rustling of leafs.

He let go of Kitana and protectively stood in front of her. His hand searched for the handle of his katana as his eyes were fixed on the direction the noise had come from. He was just about ready to draw his sword when Kitana lightly put her hand on his own and shook her head.

"It's alright, you can come out now," she said softly.

Instantly an enormous white tiger strode out of the vegetation and came to a halt in front of them.

A faint smile graced Sasuke's lips as he slightly bowed to the great cat.

"It has been a while, Tsuki. Thank you for bringing Kitana to me safely," he said respectfully.

The tiger bowed in response and purred contently as the Uchiha scratched behind her ears.

Kitana smiled as she watched the two of them. "Thank you, Tsuki. Everything is fine. I will be alright now," Kitana assured the feline. Tsuki nodded in understanding and walked off again through the bushes before disappearing in a pouf of smoke.

Kitana sighed, walked up towards her old friend and whistled. "My, my, look who's all grown up. You really did become quite the pretty boy. I'm sure all the ladies love you," Kita teased as she gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

Sasuke's onyx eyes grew cold as he gazed at the girl in front of him. Initially, her appearance had caused him to be surprised, excited, thankful and confused, but the longer the two of them stood there the more anger, sadness and the sense of betrayal took him over.

"Why are you here?" he asked bluntly, his voice suddenly as cold as ever.

Kitana frowned at his sudden change of heart. "I came to see you of course. I missed you, that's all," she chimed, though her smile quickly faded when she saw her friend's harsh expression.

Sasuke huffed. "You honestly expect me to believe that? That you suddenly felt an uncontrollable urge to see me? After having ignored me for I don't know how many years?" he hissed.

"I've never ignored you, Sasuke," Kita retorted.

Sasuke's black eyes shot wide open. "No? Ever since _he_ left the village you've avoided me like the plague! How the hell did you think I'd feel? I'd lost my entire family and I was alone, Kitana! I needed support, but I was alone," he all but yelled.

"What are you talking about? Kakashi-Sensei, Naruto, Sakura and all of your friends were there to support you," Kitana argued as she defensively crossed her arms.

"I wasn't their support I needed. I needed _you_. I wanted _you_ to be there. And you ran away from me, ignored my very existence. When I most desperately needed you, you weren't there. Do you have any idea how much that hurt?" Sasuke cried out.

"Hurt? You want to know about hurt? How much do you think it hurt _me_ when you left the village? When you left to become stronger, for you to be able to kill my best friend? Or how it hurt when I found out that to become stronger you had turned to the very man that had murdered my sensei only months before?" Kita shot back strongly.

Sasuke's eyes grew even darker than they usually were. "If you had asked me to stay I would have," he said slowly, his voice gentler than before.

A snort eluded from Kita. "Everyone, all of your friends as well as you sensei had pleaded with you not to go. If you didn't listen to any of them, what the hell was I supposed to expect? Besides, I had been _ignoring_ you for years, as you so eloquently put it," she responded sharply.

"For you, Kita, I would have stayed. If you had only asked me," Sasuke repeated softly.

Kitana's blue eyes grew dark and she lowered her head briefly. "About what you said before, you're right. I'm not here on a social call. The truth is that word about Orochimaru's death has reached me and somehow people seem to think that you're the one who killed him. Is it so strange that I wanted to know if you were alright?" she rebutted.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Kitana and carefully studied her. "It's true that I ended Orochimaru, but I would appreciate it if you stopped lying to me. We both know that is not why you're here. You're not here for Orochimaru or me, you're here because of _him_. You know what I'm going to do to him," he said menacingly.

Kitana swiftly averted her eyes. "I don't want to talk about him," she snapped. "I came here for you. To prevent you from doing something stupid, to prevent you from becoming a murderer."

Sasuke chortled. "Ha, well I'm afraid you're a little too late for that," he mocked. "Obviously it's fine for me to kill Orochimaru, but killing _him_ would somehow qualify as stupid. Then again, you're not in love with Orochimaru. _He_ on the other hand could never do wrong in your eyes," Sasuke continued bitterly.

"Stop it! I said I didn't want to talk about him!" Kitana exclaimed again. "Yes, I love your brother. But that is not why I'm here. I'm here for you. Please don't do anything you'll regret."

The raven haired boy, no, man in front of her closed his eyes with a sigh. "You said you love him. Not loved, _love_. How can you still have feelings for him? He is a murderer! He took everything from me! My clan, my parents, my life and apparently even…" Sasuke seethed before coming to an abrupt stop in order to gather his thoughts. "He betrayed me, our village. He betrayed you, Kita. He hurt all of us and you expect me to let him get away with it? Despite all that he has done to us you are still in love with him?" he inquired pressingly.

"That's not true!" Kitana defended herself instinctively. "Sasuke, I know your brother better than anyone and believe me when I tell you that Itachi is not a bad guy," she pleaded.

"Don't say that traitor's name!" his thundering voice interrupted her.

Sasuke was quiet for a moment, then snickered and shook his head. "What is it that he has that makes you love him so much? Why is it that for some reason you just can't see anyone else? Any other truth than he wanted you to hold on to?" he spoke softly. "You'll never be able to love me the way you love him, will you?"

Hesitantly Kitana placed a hand on the Uchiha's cheek. "Please stop. You don't know how wrong you are about all of this. My feelings for your brother are deep, that's true. He is my best friend, I love him and no matter what happens I will be on his side. I will do anything for him and he knows that. You know that. And it is also true that I can never love you the way I love him," she admitted.

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Sasuke grimaced as he averted his eyes, but Kita's hand forced his head back to face her.

"However," she continued, "I can also never love Itachi the way I love you. And although all those years ago I never would've admitted it, I _do_ love you, Sasuke. I've always loved you, more than I can possibly begin to tell you. And because of that, I'm asking you to trust me. If you kill Itachi, you will regret it forever," Kitana confessed with a shaky voice.

Sasuke's eyes flickered for a moment before he once again turned his gaze away from Kitana. This time he spun around on his heels and moved a few feet away.

"It's getting late," his cold voice sounded in the serenity of the abandoned forest. "Let's head back to the camp." He said as he started walking.

Kitana stared at him dumbfounded for a mere few seconds, but it didn't take her long to fume with anger.

"What? I just confessed my deepest and darkest feelings to you and all you want is to return to camp? Isn't there anything else you'd like to say to me?" she raged.

That only earned her a huff from a seemingly irritated Uchiha. "I say it's time to return to camp. And you are coming with me," he stated bluntly.

"You are out of your mind! I'm not going anywhere with you!" Kitana snapped as she crossed her arms defiantly.

"Stop yelling," Sasuke demanded. "I know you, Kita, so how long are we going to pretend you haven't already decided to come with me?" he mocked her as he started walking out onto the clearing where his companions had set up camp.

And after letting out a frustrated growl, Kitana reluctantly followed him.

* * *

Ever since the moment Sasuke had left the campsite, Karin had been impatiently pacing back and forth, anxious for his return.

"Where the hell is he? Shouldn't he be back by now? You don't suppose anything happened, do you?" she asked no one in particular.

Suigetsu sighed in boredom. "Hold your horses, will you? Maybe he just needs some time away from your psychotic ass," he stated.

"You mind running that by me again?" Karin snarled dangerously as she folded her hand into a fist.

Suigetsu snickered at her enraged look and for moment he would've sworn he saw smoke coming from her ears.

"Will the two of you please give it a rest?" Jugo pleaded as he disapprovingly shook his head. Even with his calm nature the bickering between the two of them occasionally became too much.

Suddenly Karin turned to the forest. "There! He's coming… and there's someone with him," she announced. Curiously both Suigetsu and Jugo peered in the direction Karin had indicated to catch a glimpse of their friend's mysterious consort, but neither of them could make out who it was. However, as the pair came closer Karin screeched.

"A girl! It's a girl! Why on earth is he bringing a girl?" she cried out in horror.

"Duh… to replace you. It's not like he liked you anyways," Suigetsu teased, earning himself a ferocious glare from the chakra sensor who demonstratively plopped down next to the fire.

In the meanwhile Sasuke and a stunning young lady had reached the camp grounds.

"Who's your friend?" Suigetsu asked as Sasuke passed him.

"Why don't you ask her?" was his simple reply.

Jugo extended his hand to their female guest and offered her a warm smile. She beamed back up at him and shook his hand.

"I am Kitana Izanaki, an old friend of the _Uchiha_" she introduced herself with a nod in Sasuke's direction. However, she didn't know that by simply looking into her eyes Jugo had known exactly who she was.

"Your eyes are just like the midnight sky," Jugo murmured, still peering into her eyes. "They are the darkest of blue and yet they sparkle as if they are lit up by billions of shining stars. I know who you are, Kitana, and it is an honor to meet you. I am Jugo," he said with a genuine smile.

Kitana stared at him flabbergasted and laughed nervously. "Uhm, yeah right, nice to meet you too," she muttered halfheartedly, rapidly pulled away her hand and took a few steps back.

"Oh, I really didn't mean anything by that," Jugo assured her with an apologetic smile as he scratched the back of his head.

"Jugo, Suigetsu," Sasuke called out from his log by the fire. "Start preparing a place for Kitana to sleep."

His two companions were already on their way when Kitana called them back. "Wait. Stop right there. I will be fine, there is no need for you to be sent out on errands in the middle of the night," she told them as she shot the Uchiha a deadly glare.

"Will you listen to me just this once," Sasuke pressed as he snapped his head to face Kitana. "I'm not letting you sleep on the cold ground."

Kitana chuckled sardonically. "I'm sorry, I wasn't aware that you even cared! Besides, everyone else is sleeping on the _cold ground_" she yelled.

"Hey!" Karin butted in and jumped up from where she's been sitting. "Don't even dare addressing my Sasuke with that tone!" she hissed.

Kitana suddenly snapped her head towards Karin and defiantly put her hands to her hips. "_Your_ Sasuke? Listen Red, I don't who the hell you think you are, but stay out of this," she warned.

"You heard me," Karin repeated. "Speak to him like that again and you'll have to deal with me."

Suigetsu sat down and chuckled. "Ah, finally some entertainment. And cat fight no less. Nice," he snickered in amusement, but both girls ignored him.

"I will talk to him in whatever manner I please. And even though I just walked in here, I'm going to assume he's been giving you the cold shoulder ever since you met. And who can blame him," Kita spat out at Karin.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" the redhead demanded.

"It means that I don't see why any man would want you. With that haircut from hell? It looks like two different barbers were working on your hair, both of which did a terrible job. But then again, it does suit your bipolar personality," Kitana stung with a triumphant smirk.

"How dare you, you dirty little bitch! Take that back!" Karin screamed as she launched at Kitana, her fists clenched. But Kita didn't take it back. Better yet, it didn't cause her much trouble to dodge Karin fist, spin around and land a well-placed knee in Karin's stomach. Karin let out an agonizing moan as she fell to the ground.

"Kitana!" Sasuke interrupted. "That's enough. Step away from her," he ordered and strode into her direction.

Quickly Kita bent forwards eyeing her not-so-challenging opponent menacingly. "Next time you feel like getting into fight, make sure you know who you're dealing with," she warned.

"I thought I told you to back off," Sasuke said as he came up next to Kitana and inspected the damage she had inflicted on his companion.

A set of piercing blue eyes glared at him in response. "I'm sorry, but you don't get to tell me what to do. I gave you a chance to tell me how you feel and you made it pretty clear that you don't care what happens to me. Apparently you're only comfortable displaying the rare set of emotions you possess when your bipolar bitch of a girlfriend is involved!" Kitana snapped, spun around on her heels and stomped off into the field.

* * *

Kitana had been laying in the field for a while when she heard steady footsteps approaching her and yet she didn't move a muscle to see who it was. The person stopped and proceeded to lay next to her in the soft grass.

"You caused quite a scene back there," Jugo's calm, yet friendly voice spoke to her.

"If you're here to defend him, I suggest you leave as quickly as you came," Kita warned not even bothering to look at him. Instead she kept her gaze fixed on the stars in the sky above her.

Jugo snickered. "Actually, that's not what I'm here for," he responded with a smile.

"I must have come across a little weird earlier," he started as he turned his head sideways to look at Kita.

"A little?" she giggled in reply. "You came across as a major weirdo!"

"I guess so," Jugo continued, "but the fact is that not everyone is good with words. Sometimes it can be really hard to make people understand exactly what you're trying to say or maybe in conveying your feelings, words just don't cut it. Sometimes words are overrated."

Kitana sighed deeply. "Even so, some things have to be said, Jugo," she sighed again. "Some things have to be heard, maybe even more so when the person speaking has difficulty saying them."

Jugo smiled once more.

"If you're expecting Sasuke to talk about his feelings, I hope you do realize you could be in for a long wait. But just because he doesn't say it, that doesn't mean he doesn't care. He loves you, you know." The red haired Shinobi stated.

A sad look spread across Kita's face as she glanced at Jugo skeptically. "And how, may I ask, have you acquired this wisdom?" she asked with a grimace.

"'Her eyes were just like the midnight sky', he told me. 'They were the darkest of blue and yet they always sparkled as if they were lit up by billions of shining stars.' Every night he sits out by the fire staring up at the sky and he thinks of you. That is why when I saw your eyes tonight I immediately knew who you were," Jugo explained.

"Did he really say that?" Kita asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Yes, he did. And that's why you should be patient with him. Just talk to him, _calmly_ I might add, and you'll find out exactly how he feels about you. Just give him a chance," Jugo pressed.

"You are a nice guy, Jugo," Kita said as she smiled at him.

"So is Sasuke," Jugo replied with a wink.

Kitana smirked. "I suppose I should head back to the camp now, huh?"

An amused grin crept on Jugo's face as he responded. "You do just that."

* * *

While Jugo had joined Kitana out in the field and Suigetsu and Karin were sound asleep, Sasuke had sat on his log by the fire once again. However, at that particular night he was not transfixed by the dancing flames as he usually was, he wasn't looking up at the stars and he wasn't contemplating his vengeance. He was sad. Just sad.

And confused. By this girl from long ago whom he loved, but who as long as his brother lived would not love him the same way. Or maybe she did love him, she had said she did. But she hadn't specified exactly what kind of love it was. For all Sasuke knew it could be the deep love you hold for an old friend. And he didn't want to be Kitana's friend anymore. After all that time he needed to be more than that. As much as Sasuke despised the notion, all those years ago when things had still been good between them, Itachi had been right about his feelings for Kita.

After having sat by the fire for a while Sasuke felt a presence coming up behind him, but didn't bother to avert his eyes from the flames as Kitana sat down on the opposite end of the log. She sat there quietly, staring blankly ahead of herself.

A few minutes had passed when Kitana turned her eyes from the fire and glanced at the raven haired boy next to her. When her gaze trailed down his body, her eyes stopped at his waist. Or more specifically the weapon secured to it. She slowly slid closer to Sasuke over the log and gently placed a hand on the sheath of his katana as his eyes carefully followed her every move.

"May I?" she asked softly as she looked at him intently. Sasuke sighed at her gaze. Her eyes were as strong and unwavering as he remembered them to be, and yet they had a certain softness to them that he had always admired.

He gave Kitana a curt nod and watched her as she proceeded to unsheathe the blade and carefully examined it, trailing the edge with her fingertips. Sasuke had always been fascinated by the way Kitana handled weapons. It was almost as if she attempted to connect with them, to communicate with them and to hear their stories. And he couldn't help but melt at the sight of her caressing the sword that he had cherished all this time, the sword that meant so much to him.

"It's a beautiful sword," Kitana said in a gentle tone as she slid the katana back in its sheath and Sasuke turned his gaze to the fire once again. "But why a katana though? I always saw you as more of a shuriken guy," she added with a faint smile.

Sasuke turned his head to face her. "A long time ago I used to know this girl," he started as his onyx eyes bore deep into her midnight blue orbs. "A girl that I cared about a lot. And she told me that her name as well as her body was as one with the katana. So when that girl was beyond my reach, I chose the next best thing. That way I would always be able to carry at least a piece of her with me. That way it felt like she hadn't been completely lost to me," he said sadly, the last part barely audible.

But Kita had heard him loud and clear.

"You haven't lost her, Sasuke," Kita said as she laid her head against his shoulder. "It's _she_ that has been a little lost. I never meant to ignore you. Has it occurred to you that maybe I just didn't know what to say to you?" she said as she looked up at him.

"You had lost you parents, your clan and your brother all at once and I couldn't think of a single thing to say or do that could've possibly made you feel any better."

Sasuke grimaced. "All I needed was for you to be there. Just be there. That would have been enough for me," was his soft reply.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke," Kitana whispered as she averted her gaze.

A long silence fell between them and for a while the two of them sat there on the log staring into the flames. Admiring the elegant dance of the embers in the wind. Enjoying the warmth of the fire and each other. Relishing the serenity of the night. Until Kitana spoke up once again.

"Sasuke?" she whispered.

"Hm," he replied softly.

"What has happened to us? Ever since I came here we've done nothing but fight. We never used to fight before. _Ever_. What's wrong with us?" Kitana posed sadly.

"There is nothing wrong with us. We just grew up. Life is more complicated now," Sasuke replied as he briefly glanced down at Kita, who was still leaning onto his shoulder.

Kita snickered quietly. "Well one of us did. As word has it you've turned into quite the ladies man," she teased as she poked her friend in the head with a finger.

"I am no such thing," Sasuke replied with a smirk as he playfully swatted away her hand.

"No? Then I guess you're just a man who gets a lot of ladies," she uttered sarcastically.

A grin spread across her face as Sasuke shook his head in dismay.

"What? Don't tell me you have lady problems," Kita joked.

"I don't have any problems," Sasuke chuckled. "And I don't have any ladies either."

"Somehow I find that hard to believe," Kita stated as she cocked her head and raised an eyebrow.

Sasuke chuckled again. "It's true though. Although it's not for lack of trying on the ladies' part," he admitted.

"Then why?" his friend asked confusedly.

Sasuke sighed. "Because they don't interest me."

Kitana blinked a few times before bursting out in laughter. "What are you trying to say? That men are more suited for you?" she mocked him.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and prodded Kita in the shoulder.

"Ha ha. Really funny, Kita. It's not that women don't interest me at all," he started as he placed an arm around her shoulder. "It's just that I've been with women these past few years and though they were all quite eager to be with me, none of them ever took the time to get to know me. They touched me and looked at me and listened to me, but not one of them saw me for who I really am or really heard what I had to say. I was the pretty boy, the mysterious quiet man, but never just Sasuke. And so after a while I decided to forget about them altogether. If they had no intention of knowing me, then I sure as hell wasn't going to waste any more time on them," he explained bitterly.

Kitana sat up straight and gently stroked Sasuke's hair.

"You know, not all women are like that," she said with a comforting smile.

"Oh, I know that," Sasuke replied as he turned to upper half of his body towards Kitana. "I know that you are not like that. Ever since we were little those eyes of yours have seen right through me, all the way down to my core. Whenever I told you something, you heard me. That's why you've always been special to me. You are different from the other girls."

Kita's eyes softened as she placed her hand on Sasuke's. "You've always been special to me too," she responded.

A frown formed on Kita's forehead as Sasuke abruptly pulled back his hand. "What does that mean, Kita?" he demanded, exhaustion and the faintest trace of desperation evident in his voice.

"It means that I care about you," Kita answered.

"The same way I care about you?" the Uchiha pressed.

Kita rolled her dark blue eyes. "Well, I wouldn't know. You haven't told me how you feel about me…" she pointed out sharply.

"Do you really need me to?" Sasuke asked surprised.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do," Kitana urged as she narrowed her eyes at him.

After a deep sigh Sasuke caught hold of Kita's hand. "Fine. The truth is that ever since I was a boy, I've considered girls to be annoying. Most girls. But not you. You understood me and although you were in fact my brother's best friend, I'd considered you a close friend of my own as well. But as I got older the way I looked at you started to change. I got nervous whenever I was near you and when you weren't around I couldn't wait to see you. I fell in love with you, Kita. It didn't matter to me how popular I was with the girls in the village because I only wanted to be noticed by one of them. By you. And over the years my feelings haven't changed. If anything they have grown. Every time I was with someone else, all I could think about was you. You wanted to know what you mean to and the answer to that is very simple. You are everything to me, Kitana. And I love you."

Only on a few rare occasions was Kitana Izanaki at loss of words. But the moment that Sasuke had confessed his love for her was definitely one of those times. And the Uchiha was visibly amused by that accomplishment.

"You know, this is where you say something," he whispered in her ear, a smirk playing on his lips.

Finally Kitana replied with a smirk of her own. "You know what? Sometimes words just don't cut it," she said, leant forwards and lightly put her lips against Sasuke's. At first Kita could feel him smirk onto her lips, yet slowly but surely his smile faded away into a tender kiss. An innocent, but tender kiss. Once she had pulled back Kita opened her eyes and was greeted by Sasuke's pitch-black ones. Eyes that looked at her in way that they never had before. Passionately.

"Yes…" Kita murmured.

"Yes what?" Sasuke asked, his face so close to Kita's that she could feel his warm breath on her delicate skin.

"The answer to your question," she said while she beamed up at him. "It's yes. I do feel the same way about you, Sasuke. And I don't ever want you to doubt that."

"I believe you," he breathed in Kita's ear as he secured his arms around her in a tight embrace. "Don't ever leave me," he pleaded and placed a kiss of her soft dark hair.

Kita looked up at Sasuke affectionately as she replied. "I wasn't planning on it. Not anytime soon, anyways."

"Not ever," Uchiha snickered as he tightened his grip. "I want to be with you forever. Starting tonight."

Kita frowned as Sasuke released her, stood up from the log and extended his had to her. She reluctantly took it and narrow her eyes as he started pulling her away from the fire.

"What are you doing?" Kita asked as Sasuke laid down on the grass at a safe distance from were Karin and Suigetsu were sleeping, and snickered as he started to pull her down as well.

"What does look like I'm doing?" he said with a suggestive smirk on his face. "It's late so I'm taking you to bed."

Kitana raised an eyebrow, but laid down on her side next to him nonetheless and a wave of heat spread through her body when Sasuke pressed his body against her own and put an arm around her.

"Good night, Kita," he whispered, his lips barely touching her ear.

"Good night… Sasuke," Kita mumbled as she put her hand on his.


	7. Chapter 7 The Morining After

**Author Notes: It has been a long wait, but... Chapter 7 of TPB is out!  
**

**Thanks so much to all of you have messaged/reviewed, this one is for you ;)**

**Feel free to message and review. I'm open to anything that will help improve my writing. But if you just want to tell me how awesome the story is, that fine too! I'd really like to know how i'm doing so far...**

**In chapter 7, Kitana and Sasuke are pondering their next steps, but the atmosphere quickly cools down when Kita gets a surprise visit... Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Other than Kitana Izanaki, I don't own anything...**

* * *

**Chapter 7 - The morning after**

It had been a long time since Sasuke Uchiha had slept so soundly. He hadn't awoken once from his peaceful slumber, he hadn't twisted or turned all night and his sleep hadn't been disturbed by a single nightmare. His awakening, however, wasn't peaceful whatsoever.

A high-pitched screech jerked the Raven haired Shinobi back to the land of the living.

"I can't believe it! Last night they totally hated each other! How dare she even touch my Sasuke?" the Uchiha heard Karin's shrill voice rant a couple of feet away from him.

She was standing where the fire had been burning the previous night, yet now it were not the flames that were raging.

"How dare she?" Karin continued to fume. "What part of 'he is mine' doesn't this girl get?"

Jugo shook his head at the scene his companion was making and continued to stare up at the clear blue skies above him.

"Well, you can't really blame him for picking her over you," Suigetsu uttered, flashing Karin a toothy grin. "She's way cuter than you, less obsessive, mentally stable and something tells me that unlike you she might actually have some skills as a Shinobi. And she has better hair too."

Karin advanced onto Suigetsu with a menacing look. "You take that back, you freak," she hissed dangerously.

"Ha!" was the mocking reply. "Truth hurts doesn't it?"

"Take it back now!"

"Hey!" thundered a cold voice, demanding instant silence from the both of them.

"Be quiet," Sasuke continued as he slowly sat up, trying not to wake up the girl that was still sound asleep on his chest. For a minute he stayed still when she whimpered and snuggled closer against him, but as she became quiet once again he gradually moved up until he sat upright, with Kitana peacefully sleeping on his lap.

A faint smile crept onto Sasuke's lips as he looked down on her and it fascinated him that someone as strong, independent and brave as Kitana could look so completely harmless. He even had to suppress a chuckle when she brought her hand face and lazily scratched her cheek. As he studied the contours of her face, Sasuke asked himself how he had managed to live without her all this time. Her being with him had awoken something in Sasuke, something that he hadn't felt in a long time. Something that Sasuke had thought he no longer possessed. Love. Warmth. Desire. Devotion. Friendship. Hope. Just by showing up, Kitana had unlocked a whole array of feelings Sasuke had been avoiding, had banned from his heart. He had thought that emotions and bonds with other people would slow him down, would weaken him, waver his mind, that they would somehow strip him of his strength. But now that he considered it, Sasuke had to admit that he hadn't felt strong in a long time. At least not as strong as he used to be. Not as strong as he felt now.

When Sasuke Uchiha had been a boy he might not have had the skill of his older brother, but he had been determined to level with Itachi at some point, maybe even surpass him some day. And he was loved. By his family, by his friends and by a girl who Sasuke had wanted to be more than his friend. A girl that until the previous evening, he had never told about his feelings. Although now he couldn't think of a reason why he shouldn't have.

Sasuke thought about how much easier both their lives would have been had they simply been honest with each other. If he had told her how he felt, if she hadn't let him believe she was in love with his brother, what would things have been like? Would he have left the village to in search of power or would he have chosen love over vengeance? And if he had tried to leave regardless of everything, would she have stopped him? Would she have asked him to stay for their future's sake? Would they have buried the past and embraced a future together? Would they have faced life together, making the journey regardless of where it would take them? Then again, Sasuke contemplated, maybe it didn't even matter what they could have done. Why should he hold onto the limitations and hindrances of the past if he had the opportunities of tomorrow?

Slowly Sasuke raised his hand and gently trailed the edges of Kitana's face with his fingertips, but quickly retracted his hand when she suddenly opened her eyes and drowsily smiled up at him.

"Good morning," she said with a voice still raspy from her slumber.

"Good morning," Sasuke replied, feeling slightly embarrassed for her to have caught him daydreaming. He uneasily crossed his arms as Kita slowly sat up and stretched herself with a wide yawn.

"I'm sorry," Sasuke said softly, endeared by the scene in front of him, "I didn't mean to wake you."

Another loud yawn escaped from Kita as she wove his comment away with a lazy hand. "That's okay. Trust me, if I hadn't woken up now, I would have slept through the day. And it's such a beautiful one!" she responded happily.

It was indeed a beautiful day. The sun shone brightly and not a cloud interrupted the endless blue of the sky above them. Sasuke smirked at the irony. It was almost as if the heavens reflected the cleared air between him and Kitana.

"How did you sleep?" the girl in question informed.

"Surprisingly well actually," the Uchiha retorted. "Better than I've slept in a long time."

A triumphant smirk played on Kita's lips. "Good. Always nice to hear my presence is appreciated."

The raven haired Shinobi chuckled. "If you say so… Are you hungry?"

Before Kitana ever had the chance to reply her stomach answered that question for her with an excruciating rumble.

Suigetsu snickered and Jugo shook his head.

"Jeesh," Karin spat, "don't they have food in that hell hole you came from?"

Kitana shot her a poisonous look and put her hands on her hips defiantly. "Ha! You are one to talk seeing how your mere appearance makes people lose their appetite! I'm still deciding what is more distasteful: your face, your attitude or that god-awful hairdo!" she snapped back.

"Will you run that by me again, you cheap, stuck up skank?" Karin fumed.

"Gladly! I'll run it by you, over you, through you, whatever way you like it, honey. Point remains you are still trash at the end of the day!" Kita said scornfully.

"Kita, please…" Sasuke tried to calm her down, but his friend was on a roll.

"And here's something else," she continued. "Our little run-in yesterday obviously hasn't taught you a thing, but let me clear things up for you. You are no match for me. Not when it comes to Shinobi skills and most certainly not when it concerns men," she prodded. "And in case you failed to notice, he," she continued with a nod toward Sasuke, "doesn't want you. So stop trying."

It was clearly taking the chakra sensor every bit of her will power not to spontaneously combust on the spot as her eyes burned with anger at the pure audacity of Kitana's little speech.

"And I suppose you think he wants you?" she snarled, on the verge of losing her composure.

"O, I know he does," Kitana smirked. "But what he really wants right now, what he needs, is breakfast. And I, being a _real_ woman, will make him some."

"Uh, yeah. About that…" Suigetsu cut in. "We are kind of out of supplies. We should probably head to a village to stock up. So we might have to postpone breakfast."

Kita huffed and casually waved away his comment.

"That's ridiculous. There are plenty of things out in the forest that we can eat. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and we are not going to skip it. Not on my watch. I'll go see what I can find out there, because I can't let Sa-su-keeeeeee starve," Kita replied, stretching her friend's name as she had heard Karin do.

Sasuke snorted and brought his lips to Kita's ear.

"You are really laying it on thick, aren't you?" he whispered.

"You bet I am," Kita giggled softly as for Karin not to hear. "Someone has to put her in her place."

Sasuke chuckled. "And here I was thinking that you genuinely cared about me."

For a moment his friend didn't respond and she quickly averted her eyes. After a while she turned back to face him. "When I get back we should have a talk about last night," she uttered.

The Uchiha frowned. "Why? I thought we had said it all last night."

"We did," Kita retorted. "We talked about everything that has or hasn't happened between us in the past. But I'm ready now to talk about where we want to head to in the future. Us. Together."

Sasuke's heart skipped a beat at that. It was one thing for him to be considering a future with Kita, but it felt unbelievably good to know that she had been wondering about it too.

"Then go on and hurry back," he breathed in her ear.

* * *

As Kita gathered some bell mushrooms she had found growing near a large tree in the forest, she contemplated what she was going to tell Sasuke once she got back to the campsite. The truth was that she really did want to be with him, more than she had ever wanted to be with someone else. But something was holding her back. She wasn't sure if she could be with someone who was as consumed with anger as Sasuke was. She could tell he had been trying to hide it from her, but inside the Uchiha was boiling, burning with hate towards his brother.

Then again, Sasuke might not have been as carefree as he used to be, but at his core he was still the same person. When he touched her, held her, talked to her, laughed with her, he was still the same adorable boy with the pitch-black eyes and the raven hair. Her friend, her buddy and now perhaps her lover.

Kita snickered at that, but was quickly silenced by the rustling of leafs nearby her. Her eyes shot in the direction the sound had come from as she carefully examined her surroundings.

Nothing. There was nothing there. But she could've sworn she heard something.

Kitana shook her head as she snickered at her own paranoia, but jumped when a large crow suddenly sheered over her head, crowing loudly as it landed on the ground a few feet away from her. A shiver ran down Kita's spine as the bird eyed her.

A shriek escaped from her when more crows swirled down from the trees, joining the lone one on the ground. And as more crows flew in, flying over each other and landing on top of each other, Kita could see them forming a shape. A familiar shape. A shape that she hadn't seen for years.

Kita waited anxiously as the form in front of her became more pronounce and a smile spread across her face when her suspicions were confirmed. Now standing in front of her, was her dearest friend. A friend she hadn't expected to see again. But somehow he was there with her, gazing at her with gentle eyes and a faint smile.

"Hello, Kita," his warm voice greeted her.

Tears welled up in Kitana's eyes as she walked towards the man in front of her and trickled down her cheeks as she put her arms around him in a tight embrace.

"I've missed you so much," she sobbed, squeezing him tighter against her, unwilling to let go.

"I've missed you too, Kita," he replied and placed a soft kiss on her hair.

"Why didn't you ever come to see me?" she sniffed, a deep frown on her face as she looked up at him.

Her friend smiled softly. "Because, Kitana, we both know what I am. And for me to have come looking for you would have put you in danger. And that has never been my intention."

"Nonsense! You're here now and nothing bad has happened so far. All I needed was to know you were alright. And you couldn't even give me that much!" she exclaimed, ripping herself out of his embrace.

"I'm sorry," he said mournfully and placed a gentle hand on her cheek. "I know I have asked quite a lot from you. And I am grateful for everything you've done for me, but I can't help to be curious about why you didn't follow up on my most important request. Why didn't you look after my brother?"

Kitana averted her eyes and glared into the distance. After a few moments her midnight blue orbs became soft again and she turned back to face him.

"Because, Itachi, I couldn't see how_ I_ could support him, knowing what I know. Every time he looked at me I was wrecked with guilt. I've wanted to tell him so many times, I wanted to explain to him why I couldn't hate you, why even after all this time I am still defending you," she exclaimed.

"You do understand that you can never tell him, don't you?" Itachi asked pressingly, his dark eyes demanding an answer from her.

Kitana sighed and once again turned away her face, only for her friend to turn it back and look at her intently.

"You trust me, don't you?" Itachi asked her. Kitana felt a sting at the recollection of the last time her friend had asked her that question, but nodded nonetheless.

"And you love me, right?" Itachi continued, earning him another nod from Kita.

"Unconditionally," she replied sadly.

He watched her as she lowered her head, her eyes dark with inner conflict. With pain. He could see she was torn between doing what she had to and what she wanted. Itachi smiled softly as he lifted up Kita's chin with a hand.

"Then please do what I ask you."

Kita's eyes flickered as she pulled back. "Please don't make me do this! I am done lying and conniving and sneaking! If you just let me explain things, he will understand. It doesn't have to be this way. I can make him listen, I know I can. Just let me try!" she pleaded grabbing hold of Itachi's arm in pure desperation.

Her friend frowned at that, but his face quickly softened. "You made me a promise, Kita. Let's not pretend that we can change the course of things now. Things have been set in motion that make it impossible for any of us to turn back. It's not just our circumstances, but our very beings too are holding us back. People who have been where we are can never really come home without having found redemption first. And as I have explained to you, there is only one way to get it."

Kita's eyes slowly grew watery and her chest started heaving up and down.

Itachi smirked. "Don't be sad. We have always known how this would play out. Speaking of which, it does me good to see that I was right about something else too."

"What are you talking about?" Kitana sniffed.

Her friend snickered. "A long time ago I told you that somewhere in the future the way you and Sasuke look at one another would change. And I can see now that it has."

A blush crept onto Kita's cheeks as her friend looked at her knowingly.

"It's alright. You don't have to be embarrassed. As I said, I've told you this would happen years ago. I'm glad that even in times like these happiness can still flourish." Itachi reassured her.

For a few moments the both of them were quiet. They simply stood there, neither of them moved. Not even the wind dared to disturb the serenity of the moment. That is until Itachi suddenly stirred.

"I must go now," he announced.

A flustered Kitana quickly caught hold of his arm, refusing to let go.

"Please don't leave me again!" she pleaded, planting her face in his chest.

"Shhh," Itachi calmed her, placing a comforting hand on her hair. "Come now, we don't have much time and there is still one final request I need to make."

* * *

"So," a voice sounded behind Sasuke as he as sat on his log polishing his katana. "It seems like the two of you have made up."

"It seems so," the Uchiha responded without removing his eyes from the blade as Jugo sat down next to him.

"Good," his redheaded companion replied. "That's good."

A few feet away Karin huffed. "I truly don't understand what's so great about her in the first place."

That earned her a snicker from Suigetsu. "You really want me to lay it out for you?" he chortled.

The chakra sensor crossed her arms. "Whatever! She really isn't all that special. That attitude of hers, the way she disrespects my Sasuke… And the nerve of making him some crappy breakfast. She probably wants to poison all of us with some kind of –" Karin ranted until her words came to an abrupt stop. She froze where she stood and directed a suspicious glance towards the forest.

"Hey!" Suigetsu said, snapping his fingers in front of her face. But Karin ignored him, keeping her eyes fixed on the woods.

Suigetsu snorted. "Jeesh, you really are bipolar, aren't you?" he mocked.

"Be quiet," Karin urged, closed her eyes and focused hard on something.

"What's going on?" Jugo asked as he stood up from the log and joined the others.

"There's someone out there in the woods," Karin replied, her eyes still shut in concentration.

"Duh," Suigetsu cut in, "Kitana is out there getting us some grub remember?"

"Don't you think I know that?" Karin snapped and glared at him menacingly, only to turn her eyes back to the trees afterwards. "There is someone out there with her."

"What do you mean someone is there with her?" Sasuke's voice inquired from behind her. "Is she in trouble?" he pressed as he joined the group.

"I don't think so. She's… alone. Now. She's alone again," Karin called out in confusion. "But just a second ago I sensed a second person there, I swear!"

Jugo placed a comforting hand on Karin's shoulder. "I'm sure everything is fine. She'll be back in no time," he said with a soothing smile.

"Ha!" Suigetsu snorted. "She probably _wanted_ something to happen to Kita! That way she could have _her Sasuke_ all to herself," he teased.

"That is not funny," Sasuke interrupted harshly. He looked at Suigetsu intensely before he averted his gaze to the tree line in the distance. Just then Kitana emerged from amongst the trees causing the Uchiha to sigh deeply in relief.

"See?" Jugo proclaimed with a smile. "She's totally fine. Now everybody relax."

But Sasuke didn't relax. This whole thing didn't sit right with him. He couldn't help but feel something had happened. Something bad. And that feeling didn't subside when Kita arrived at the encampment with a slightly pale face and gloomy eyes, a large leaf filled with mushrooms, fruits and herbs secured in her arms.

"Is everything okay?" Sasuke inquired, a deep frown on his face.

Kitana didn't respond and there was no sign whatsoever that she intended to. Instead, she carefully avoided Sasuke's gaze and moved past him.

But the Uchiha did not settle for that. With a swift movement he grabbed hold of Kita's arm, spinning her around to face him.

"What happened out there?" Sasuke pressed. "Was someone there with you? Did you run into trouble?"

His eyes desperately searched hers for an explanation, but it didn't seem like she was going to give him one. Her midnight blue eyes grew even darker and for the briefest of moments Sasuke could see something in them that worried him. Anguish. And guilt. But what did she have to feel guilty about?

"Kitana, talk to me," he pleaded with her. Finally she lifted her head up to face him, but said nothing. Until she finally pulled her arm free from his grip.

"Nothing happened, Sasuke. I'm fine," she said, again averting her eyes.

"You're hiding something," he pointed out as he narrowed his eyes at her.

"Is that so?" Kitana retorted raising an eyebrow while she shifted her weight to one leg.

"Please tell me what happened," Sasuke asked again, his voice much calmer than Kita had expected it to be. "If we want this thing – us together – to work, we need to be honest with each other."

Kita looked at him defiantly. "If we want us to work, we need to trust each other. Do you trust me, Sasuke?" she asked, giving him a meaningful look.

"I do, but…" he started, however Kita quickly cut him off.

"Good." She stated, squatted down and started unpacking the food she had found in the woods.

"Not so fast," Sasuke tried to revive the discussion, only to be quickly silenced by Kitana.

She stared at him with dark eyes, eyes that revealed to him she was in no mood to talk.

"Trust, Sasuke," was her sole reply.


	8. Chapter 8 Chasing Waterfalls

**Author Notes:Ladies and gentlemen, here's is chapter 8 of TPB! I am already so excited to get started on the next chapter!  
**

**Again, feel free to message and review. I'm open to anything that will help improve my writing. But if you just want to tell me how awesome the story is, that fine too! I'd really like to know how i'm doing so far...**

**In chapter 8, while Kiba is being confronted with the truth, Sasuke and Kitana share a moment of intimacy... Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Other than Kitana Izanaki, I don't own anything...**

* * *

**Chapter 8 – Chasing waterfalls**

It had been over a week since Kiba Inuzuka had last seen his friend and during all that time the dog user had been nothing short of restless. He hadn't been his usual laidback self in days and was in such a terrible mood, even Akamaru maintained a safe distance. And whosoever had the audacity to imply his worry was unfounded, that Kitana could take care of herself and was probably fine, risked a vicious outburst from the agitated Shinobi. Even though Kiba himself knew that he had no reason at all to burn any of his friends down like that, he couldn't help but vent all of his frustration on anyone stupid enough to address him in his current state.

Kiba was very well aware of the fact that the person he was really upset with was Kita. He just couldn't get why she would leave without a warning, without an explanation, especially since the two of them had just resolved their issues. He had managed to get over the way she had treated him in the past, the way she had abandoned him, but when it came to the Uchiha brothers Kiba knew he didn't stand a chance. He had always been second banana to Itachi, a back-up best friend. Apparently he couldn't rely on her loyalty whenever the Uchiha were involved. And that notion hurt. Bad.

"Kiba…" a deep voice sounded behind him.

The dog user slowly turned only to see his superior, Kakashi Hatake, standing behind him.

"What is it?" Kiba replied, impatience evident in his voice.

Kakashi sighed. "You need to calm down, Kiba," he said, his voice serene as ever. "I know you are worried about Kitana, trust me, I understand. I'm not saying you shouldn't be, considering the company she's probably keeping as we speak. But the truth is that we have a mission to focus on. We need you to be sharp, Kiba. No side tracks. No distractions. You slip up and you put everyone else here in danger."

"You _don't_ understand," the Inuzuka growled angrily. "I feel… responsible for her. Somehow. I just need to make sure she's okay."

The copy ninja looked at him knowingly with his one visible eye. "Has it occurred to you that if we manage to find Itachi or Sasuke, we might find Kitana as well? My guess is she set out to find either one of them and it will only be a matter of time until we run into her."

Kiba frowned. Kakashi made point. And yet somehow the idea of Kitana being with one of the Uchiha brothers made him even more nervous. Kiba too was convinced that Kita had set out to find them, but he had no idea why. Both of them were traitors and murderers, both of them had betrayed her, both of them had betrayed their village. And as if he had read his mind, Kakashi continued.

"We need to be careful with her," the copy ninja warned, burying his hands in his pockets as he looked up at the sky. "I know that Kita is your friend, but we should not underestimate her bond with Itachi."

"Or Sasuke for that matter," Kiba added, but his sensei shook his head.

"If I know that girl, she will never choose Sasuke over his brother. Her loyalty towards Itachi is unconditional. The bond that they share… it's strong enough for her to have completely rejected Sasuke after what Itachi did to the Uchiha clan."

"That doesn't mean she condones Itachi's behavior. He's a murderer, so of course she's disappointed in him. Of course she's mad. Isn't that why she refuses to talk about him? I tried talking to her after it happened. But she wouldn't as much as say his name," Kiba defended his friend.

"That's true," Kakashi replied with a deep sigh. "But I don't think she's avoiding talking about him because she mad at him. I think she knows something about him, about what happened, that makes it impossible for her to hate him. I have the feeling she's keeping something from us. Something big."

For a moment Kiba said nothing, just stared blankly in the distance, until he finally directed his attention back to the jonin.

"And what would that be?" the young Shinobi inquired.

"I don't know. But what I do know is that we should be cautious. We don't know what we can expect from her. We set out on this mission to locate the Akatsuki, but Kitana being there will complicate things. We don't know whose side she will be on. And if she happens not to be on ours, we need to be prepared to do whatever it takes to complete our mission," Kakashi said as he gazed at Kiba intently.

A brief flicker shot through the dog user's eyes and anger visibly spread throughout his body.

"What are you saying?" he thundered at his sensei. "Are you implying that I'm expected to attack, if not kill, my best friend?"

"I'm saying," Kakashi rebutted sternly, "that you need to think about this. When it comes down to it, if she needs to choose sides, whose do you think she will choose? If it is between you and Itachi and Sasuke, who will she fight for? You know what Kita is capable of and right now, she's a loose cannon. There's no telling what she might do, so just be prepared for anything."

* * *

It was nearing midday when Sasuke Uchiha and his companions travelled through the thick forest in silence on their way to the nearest town. Ever since they had run out of supplies they had been living on whatever they had managed to find out in the woods, however, the lack of dietary variation had started to affect all members of the fellowship.

"I'm hungry!" Kitana whined as she tugged on the sleeve of Sasuke's kimono. "Feed me!"

The Uchiha smirked. "I know you're hungry. That's why we're trying to find a village, remember?" he chuckled.

"Skank…" Karin muttered under her breath as she turned her face away, earning her a huff from Kita.

"Ha! Trust me, if you didn't look so damn disgusting someone might have tried eating you," she rebutted raising an eyebrow, a smirk plastered on her face. "Honestly, I don't think anyone of us is desperate enough to put you in their mouth. But I guess that goes for guys in general," Kita prodded.

The redhead shot Kita a menacing glare, but said nothing.

Sasuke snickered briefly at his friend, then poked her in the shoulder. "Behave, Kita," he whispered.

"I will behave when _she_," Kitana retorted sweetly, pointing at Karin, "finally learns not to mess with me because she's _clearly_ no match for me."

"O, whatever!" Karin thundered. "I can take you all day, any day, no problem!"

Kita chuckled. "Wanna throw down?" she asked as she advanced onto the chakra sensor, determined to prove a point.

"Come on, ladies. Calm down, both of you," Jugo, who had been keeping to himself up until that point, urged the girls. "We're all tired and hungry, but let's at least try to keep things peaceful, alright?"

"But she started it!" Karin and Kitana called out in unison, pointing fingers at one another.

"It doesn't matter who started what. Both of you be quiet," Sasuke backed up his gentle-hearted companion.

Kitana cocked her head at that and turned to face the Uchiha. "You can't say that to me!" she protested as she defiantly put her hands on her hips.

"Hey guys," Suigetsu cut in, "if I'm not mistaking there's a village down there."

"Food!" Kita called out and let out a relieved sigh. She peered into the distance and sure enough, a village laid only a fifteen-minute walk away from them.

Sasuke smirked. "Well… we all know how hungry you are, so I bet you're dying to go down here," he teased as he rested his arm on Kita's shoulder.

Kitana covered her mouth and gasped in feigned shock. "Dude… You do realize what that sounded like right, don't you?" she responded.

A faint blush spread across the Uchiha's face. "I-I… I didn't mean it like _that_. You know I didn't mean it like that! Right? Honestly, I-" Sasuke tried defending himself.

"It's okay, Sa-su-keeeeeeeeeeee. Everyone knows you're not a pervert. I know girls don't –and I quote- _interest_ you," Kita teased her embarrassed friend, playfully poking him in the shoulder.

"Honestly, Kita, sometimes I really hate you," the Uchiha countered with a smirk.

* * *

Kitana inhaled deeply as she entered the gates of the small inn town of Nikko at the side of Sasuke, his companions readily following a few steps behind. As they walked along surprisingly lively streets for such a small town, Kitana took in the scents surrounding her. Essences of herbs and spices, fresh fruits, fish and flowers penetrated her nose and filled her with a homey comfort. She looked sideward to the Uchiha walking next to her and a small smile crept onto her lips. It was remarkable how soft and gentle he was considering how hard he tried to come across as cool and distant. Then again, he wasn't all soft. He harbored some serious grudges, festered them for all it was worth. And as much as she wanted to alleviate some of that pain, she wasn't sure he would let her. But that didn't mean she wouldn't try. All she had to do was figure out how.

After having looked around for a while, Sasuke had decided the group would spend the night at the Okoshi Inn. The rates were cheap and the rooms large enough to accommodate all five of them. After one of the hostesses had showed them to their quarters, Suigetsu lazily slid down against a wall.

"Aw!" he called out with a sigh of relief. "I can't believe how good it feels to sit on something other than a log, grass or the cold, hard soil for a change!"

"I'll say," Kita giggled as she opened the windows and closed her eyes as a cool breeze caressed her skin.

"Ha!" Suigetsu retorted. "How long since you last slept on a nice, soft, warm, fluffy bed?" he inquired cynically.

"A little over a week, I guess," Kita answered with a shrug, earning herself a grunt from Suigetsu.

"Does little princess miss her palace already? Must be tough not to have servants left and right to tend to your every need in your ivory tower?"

Kita put on a playful pout. "I do, now that you mention it. But fortunately I still have Prince Charming and his knights," she replied with a wink at Sasuke. "Just too bad that a raging, ginger bitch had to be written into this little fairy tale. Why haven't you put her down yet?" Kita added smugly with a dirty glare at Karin.

"Because," Suigetsu chuckled, "it is way too much fun to watch you humiliate her. If she's not doing that herself that is!"

"Why don't you two go fuck each other if you agree so much?" Karin fumed, her blood visibly boiling and her fury only got worse when Kita waved away her comment in amusement.

"Psychooo..." she stated in a singsong voice. "Let's just ignore her. How about I make you boys some yummy food?" She asked sweetly. "How about sukiyaki? " she asked Sasuke. "I know you love sukiyaki!"

"Forget it!" Karin interrupted. "_I_ will cook today. And you guys damn well better love it!" she warned menacingly.

"Fine by me," Kita shrugged. "So go out and get some groceries."

Sasuke shook his head as he saw Karin getting increasingly furious, while Kita seemed to be enjoying herself just fine torturing the redhead. For the sake of his team however, he had to keep both of them in check.

"If Karin is going to be busy cooking, _we_ might as well go out for a walk. Maybe talk some more," he suggested with a meaningful look towards Kitana. This apparently amused her even more.

"Talk? What should we talk about?" she asked with a smirk.

"I'm sure we'll find something."

Kita snickered. "Very well then. Just let me freshen up real quick before we go, okay?" she said as she disappeared into the washing room.

As soon as Kitana had gone to the bathroom and Sasuke heard the water running, he called on the attention of his companions.

"Here's what we're going to do. I want you to go out onto the streets and gather as much intel about the Akatsuki as possible. Regarding their organization, hideouts , but about Itachi Uchiha in particular. Use whatever means necessary, but try be as inconspicuous as possible."

"What about Kitana? Won't she be upset if she finds out you're still going after Itachi?" Jugo informed. Sasuke frowned and crossed his arms.

"She knows what my plans are. But, yes, I expect her to be upset were she to find out. But is something between me and her, making it none of your concerns. Just leave her to me."

* * *

"What is it, Kiba?" Naruto inquired when his comrade suddenly picked up the pace. The Leaf Shinobi had still been in pursuit of the Uchiha, when Kiba had caught onto Sasuke's scent. They had initially had some difficulty catching on to his trail and now that they had a lead, they had no choice but to follow it. But all of the sudden something in Kiba's attitude had changed.

"It's not just Sasuke I'm smelling. It's her. She's with him." Kiba snarled.

"Kitana is with Sasuke?" Sakura asked confusedly. "How did she find him so quickly? We've been looking for days!"

"So has she!" Kiba barked. "And she should've known better."

"I'm sure it will be fine once we find them, Kiba," Hinata attempted to calm her friend in her tiny voice. But Kiba ignored her completely and accelerated his speed once more. He had to get to Kita before she did something stupid. Or got hurt. Every girl that had gotten involved with the Uchiha brothers had ended up heartbroken. And Kiba'd be damned before he let anything like that happen to Kitana. He loved her too much for that. No matter what had happened between them in the past, he would never forsake her, or shut her out, or let her get hurt. He felt it was his duty to keep her safe. Kiba grimaced at the recollection of what his mother had said to him a few days earlier.

"I got to hand it to you, Kiba, I never thought I'd live to see the day that my son fell in love with a girl. But you seem to be pretty crazy about Kitana," Tsume had pointed out.

"Granted," Hana had added with a smile." You two make an exceptionally cute couple."

But they didn't understand. There was nothing romantic or sexual about Kiba's feelings for Kita. He wasn't in love with her. He didn't fantasize about her. He wasn't jealous when she was spending time with other guys. She was his best friend and he loved her. More than anyone else. Kita was to Kiba what Itachi seemed to be to her. And right now Kiba knew that Kita needed him. And he sure as hell was going to be there. As soon as possible.

* * *

It was a bright day outside. The skies were clear and only a few scattered fluffy clouds disrupted the endless ocean of blue. A soft breeze rustled the leafs of the trees that surrounded the young couple that strolled through the woods. A lone ray of sunlight broke through the thick roof of leafs and illuminated the lovers' path.

"It's a beautiful day today, isn't it?" Kita pondered walking side to side with the Uchiha.

"Hm," Sasuke replied. "I suppose it is."

"How long has it been, Sasuke, since you were able to enjoy a day as beautiful as this one?" she inquired. Sasuke shrugged.

"There have been plenty of beautiful days. I guess I just haven't taken the time to appreciate them. I think it's safe to say I have been otherwise occupied," he grimaced.

Kitana glanced at him with a soft smile. "Well, you should. We owe it to those who have passed to make the most of every day. To view to world and everything in it with renewed admiration each and every day. To see that there isn't only hate and pain and revenge, but there is beauty, forgiveness and love to be found around every corner. You owe it to them _and_ to yourself to acknowledge that."

Sasuke smiled. "I see the beauty in you," he smirked as he gently stroked her hand with his.

"I'm serious!" she laughed, however, her smile quickly faded. "I know what is like not to be able to see that silver lining to things. The more hardships you face, the more prone you are to believing that _someone_ has to suffer the way you do, simply because that is the only way for someone else to understand what you're going through. 'I feel bad, so someone else has to feel bad too', 'I got hurt so I can hurt someone now', 'he killed someone so I kill him'… It is an endless cycle of destruction and hate. Why do people always find a way to justify bad things? Why isn't there ever some justification for good things? Why doesn't anyone ever say 'I am loved and therefore I'm going to love others 'or 'you've been good to me, so now I'm going to share that fortune with the world'?"

"Because," Sasuke responded after carefully listening to what she said, "people feel they deserve good things. Things are expected to be good, so when they aren't that's considered to be injustice."

"But that's ridiculous! Who ever said that happiness was promised at birth? Both happiness and sorrow can be created. They are two sides of the same coin. Why would you be entitled to one, but not the other?"

Sasuke sighed. "People are funny that way," he replied with a small smile.

"Sasuke…" Kitana started as she came to a sudden stop. She lowered her head as she swept a lock of hair out of her face. The Uchiha looked at her questioningly as she crossed her arms and turned her blue eyes up to face him. "I want you to be happy. I know that you're not right now and I want to help you so bad, but I really don't know how," she said in a sad voice.

Sasuke huffed. "You're right. I'm not happy. I can't even remember the last time I was," he responded as he gazed up at the sky, but then shook his head with a smirk. "No, that's not true. I did experience a brief moment of intense happiness a few days ago when someone I care about deeply made a surprise appearance. Whenever I see her face, my heart lights up. Whenever she's with me, the world doesn't seem that bad at all. And when she kisses me… don't even get me started on that."

Kita smirked at the Uchiha with sparkly eyes. "I see… And do I know this mystery lady?"

Sasuke chuckled. "I'm sure you do. She and you have a lot of things in common," he stated as he gently pulled Kita's arm in order to get her moving again. The serenity of the forest enclosed itself around them like a protective barrier, an invisible veil that separated the two of them from the rest of the world. In the distance they heard the chirping of birds, the rustling of leafs and the peaceful sounds of a waterfall. For a while the two of them walked ahead in silence, until Kitana spoke up.

"Hey, Sasuke…" she started.

The raven haired Shinobi glanced at her, waiting for her to continue her sentence.

"How many girls have you been with?" Kitana asked gingerly with a wide grin plastered on her face.

Sasuke frowned for a moment, a bit taken aback by her abrupt question, but soon erupted in a thunderous laugh. "You did _not_ seriously ask me that!" he chortled.

"I did," Kita grinned. "And I'm still waiting for an answer."

"You don't actually want to know that, right?" the Uchiha inquired, squinting at the girl next to him, trying to detect any sign of her jerking him around. But despite that huge grin of hers, she appeared to be pretty serious about it.

"O, I am. I'm just curious how much of the rumors about you are true."

"Hm," Sasuke responded with a smirk. "Well, if you asking how many girls I've been serious with, then the answer is none."

At that Kita's grin grew even wider. "I see. So what if I asked you how many you've _slept_ with?"

Her friend shook his head and rubbed his forehead. "Uh, then the answer would be I've stopped counting," he answered truthfully. He _had_ been with lots of girls. Girls of whom he didn't know the names and couldn't remember the faces. They were just were just hollow memories, phantoms that had no other significance to him them the purpose they had served on the nights he had met them.

"That bad, huh?" Kita giggled in response to the Uchiha's vacant expression.

"How about you?" Sasuke informed with a curt nod at the girl beside him.

"I've been with a few guys from the village. I've never been with one guy for more than a few months though, so nothing serious. And I obviously don't have your track record," Kita replied.

"A few guys, huh?" Sasuke asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"Yeah, so? I'm hardly a virgin, you know!" Kita snickered. "Then again, would you want me to be?" she inquired, her midnight blue orbs sparkling with amusement.

"I guess not," Sasuke admitted with a smirk. "That way there would be way too much for me to teach you."

"Is that a subtle way of telling me you want to have sex with me?" Kita teased as she glomped Sasuke's arm and looked up at him coyly.

"Subtlety isn't my thing," he teased back.

"Because I would totally do you," Kitana pressed as she poked her friend in the shoulder.

Sasuke looked down at her and shook his head. "Has anyone ever told you you're a total tease?"

Kita smiled and shook her head as well. "Technically I would only be a tease if I didn't also follow through on my word," she clarified.

In the meanwhile they had reached a small crescent-shaped clearing with the waterfall they had been hearing for a while now. The waterfall hadn't been higher than about fifty meters or wider than ten meters, but the nebula of droplets produced by the water falling down into the pond at the base of the fall had been more than sufficient to quickly dampen Sasuke's white shirt as well as Kita's dress.

"It's beautiful," Kita murmured as she took off her sandals, unstrapped her katana, sat down by the water and slowly slipped in her feet. As Sasuke joined her on the grass, she looked at him with an indefinable look.

"What?" he asked her curiously.

She shook her head and turned her gaze back to the fall. They sat there in silent comfort, side by side, completely at peace as if all the drama they had been carrying around didn't exist. As if the world was simple, as if they were just two people in love without a care in the world, as if nothing else mattered but the two of them. Kitana inhaled and exhaled deeply, for a minute letting go of all of her burdens and relished in the moment. Next to her, she could see Sasuke do the same. She smiled as she put her hand on his and her heart skipped a beat when he looked at her and laced their fingers together. She felt stupid for reacting that way to something as innocent as hand holding, but she couldn't help it. Even such an innocent action sent a sudden surge of electricity throughout her body that had nothing to do with the Uchiha's lighting type chakra and everything with the fact that she was aching for him to touch her. Anywhere for that matter. And Sasuke seemed to notice.

"You really weren't joking, were you?" he asked with a gentle smile.

Kita shook her head.

"Good…" Sasuke murmured as he leant closer towards her. Kitana's heart was shifting into overdrive when Sasuke's lips met hers and she ran her fingers through his dark hair as she kissed him back. She slightly arched her back as one of Sasuke's strong arms wrapped itself around her waist, while his other hand caressed her cheek. His kiss was gentle and innocent, but the longer it lasted the more eager Sasuke seemed to become. It didn't take long for their tongues to find each other, dancing as arousal built up in the both of them. As they fell back onto the grass Sasuke let his palm slide up Kitana's leg, causing Kitana's to moan onto his lips and grab a tight hold of his shirt. Their kiss grew increasingly more passionate and their breathing heavier as they touched each other, until Sasuke suddenly pulled back panting heavily.

"What's wrong?" Kita asked gasping for air as she leant onto her elbows.

Sasuke closed his eyes, still out of breath. "We should stop now. While I still can," he breathed.

"What if I don't want you to?" Kita said pulling him back into a passionate kiss. She was driving him crazy. Sasuke wanted to be with her more than anything, but he respected her too much to do her right there out in the open. Not that _she_ seemed to mind.

"Wait," he said as he once again pulled back. "We shouldn't. Not here. Not like this."

"Why not?" she groaned in exasperation as she threw herself back onto the grass.

"Because," Sasuke sighed, "I want treat you right. And I don't think fucking you in the bushes qualifies as right."

Kita sat up with a scowl. "Will you stop treating me like a delicate little flower? Because I'm not! I've been sent on S-rank missions before you were even a genin. So don't belittle me. I don't need you to protect me," she snapped.

Sasuke's onyx eyes grew soft as he caught Kita in a tight embrace. "I know that. I know that you can take care of yourself. I know that you don't need me to protect you. But that doesn't mean that I won't try. I have to."

"Why?" Kita asked quietly.

"Because I love you," Sasuke responded.

"Yeah well," Kita said as she pulled back from his embrace. "I can tell that _that_ loves me too," she smirked with a nod towards Sasuke's crotch.

The Uchiha averted his eyes in embarrassment. "He doesn't get a say in this," was his blunt reply.

"Too bad," cooed Kita as she crawled towards Sasuke and put a hand on his chest. "I'm sure the two of us would get along just fine," she breathed in his ear. A shiver went up Sasuke's spine and it took every ounce of his will power not to throw her down and ravish her on the spot. He was trying really hard to be a gentleman, but he could only take so much. And Kita knew. Boy, did she know.

"Come one, Sasuke, don't be a buzz kill. You used to be so much fun," Kita whined as she descended her hand, but Sasuke quickly caught hold of it. He looked into Kita's eyes with a penetrating gaze. A look that revealed everything he was feeling at that moment. Desire. Passion. Love. Sincerity. With a hint of torment.

"Do you have _any_ idea how badly I want you? If we were anywhere else right now, there would be no telling what I'd do to you. You don't know what I'd give to have a private space right now," he declared. Kita smirked.

"I might have one for you," she grinned.

Sasuke frowned and looked down below Kita's waist.

"Not that one, you idiot! Over there," she said as she pointed a finger towards the waterfall. And sure enough, as Sasuke looked more closely he could see a cave behind the veil of water. A wide grin spread across his face as he quickly got onto his feet. "It's on," he stated with a suggestive smile.

* * *

It was well past noon when Sasuke and Kitana found themselves lying in a cave completely bare, holding onto each other for dear life. Neither one of them could describe what they had just experienced, neither one of them knew what to say, although they didn't feel any particular need to converse. They were fine with just lying there in a peaceful quiet, reliving the moments they had shared that day. Sasuke could honestly say that at that moment he was genuinely happy, more content with his life than he had been in a long time. This had been the first time he had ever slept with a girl he cared about, that he loved and it had been the best sex he'd had in his life. He finally understood all those idiots claiming that making love to someone you truly loved added a deeper dimension to the relationship. He did feel more connected to Kita in some strange way, like their souls had partially been conjoined, like they each contained a small part of one another. He felt completely at peace and something inside him was telling him that as long as he has Kita, as long as she was with him, everything would be alright.

Sasuke smiled as he planted a soft kiss on Kitana's forehead. She smiled back as she planted a kiss on his chest in return and laid her head back down on his shoulder. She too was completely content. It had been a while since she had last slept with a guy. And being with Sasuke had been amazing. Even though it had been their first time together, it hadn't been awkward at all. Sasuke seemed to know his way around her body perfectly and it hadn't taken her long to find all of his soft spots. They felt so comfortable with each other, were so completely relaxed and everything felt so natural. It pained Kita to think that same concept didn't apply to certain other areas of their lives. Outside the cave awaited more drama, more pain and a seemingly inevitable battle. One Kitana didn't look forward to. In silence she prayed, wished that Sasuke would listen to her reason, that he would trust her enough to do what she asked him without asking questions. And as she did, Kita figured it was worth a shot trying to reason with the Uchiha.

"Do you love me?" Kitana asked suddenly as she snuggled up closer against Sasuke.

The Uchiha chuckled and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead once again.

"I had hoped to get that message across during the past two hours," he pointed out bluntly, a smirk tugging at his lips.

"O, shut up," she replied with a playful pout. "Well… Do you?" Kitana pressed.

Sasuke smiled and pulled her in closer.

"You know I do, Kita," he reassured her.

"And do you trust me?" she continued.

"Of course I do," Sasuke snickered.

"Will you do anything for me? Even if it means doing something you'd really rather not?" Kitana prodded.

Sasuke's smile faded and was replaced by a deep frown.

"Kita, I'm not sure I like where this is going…" he responded hesitantly.

Kitana was quiet for a moment before she continued as if she was carefully formulating her next words, finding a way to tell him something Sasuke wasn't sure he wanted to hear.

"I need you to let go, Sasuke," she murmured eventually, her voice slightly above a whisper.

"Let go of what? You?" He asked, obviously confused over her lack of clarity.

"Of _Him_. Of your vengeance. Killing your brother will not make you any happier," she stated while lifting her head from his chest to face him.

Instantly Sasuke's eyes grew dark and he turned his face from the girl next to him.

"Let's not go over this again, okay?" he said, his voice cold and distant. How could she even think to ask him something like that? Even though she knew what _He_ had done to his family, his clan, to him. The mere thought of it was pure betrayal.

"Sasuke, please. I'm asking you to do this one thing for me. Please," Kitana pleaded and looked up at him with big blue eyes.

"I'd do I lot of things for you, Kita, but not this. For what _He_ did… _He_ deserves to die. And make no mistake, I will kill _Him_," the Uchiha answered menacingly.

"_He_ took everything from me," he added softly.

"That's not true. You have me. And I promise that I'll stick by you, I'll never shut you out again. We'll love each other, take care of each other and everything will be fine. Just let go of the past and let's move on together," she urged, yet to no avail.

"That's enough, Kitana. I am going to kill Itachi and I won't stop until I get my revenge. Not even for you," he persisted sternly as he gently shoved her off of him, got up and started gathering his clothes.

Just when he reached down to grab his kimono, Kitana's hand swiftly pulled it out of his reach.

"You listen to me," she said as she stood up to look him dead in the eye. "I promise you that if you kill Itachi, you will regret it. And I will never forgive you."

For a few moments the two of them looked at each other, until Sasuke pulled his kimono from her hands with one graceful swing.

"So be it," was his icy response.

Kitana stared at him dumbfounded as he quickly put on his clothes, but didn't speak and stayed where she was.

"We should head back to the village," Sasuke said eventually.

"Well, what if I don't feel like it?" Kitana snapped, her arms crossed defiantly and her eyes narrowed at the raven haired Shinobi.

Sasuke was about to reply when a strange feeling hit him. A chill that spread throughout his body. And it wasn't the kind of chills that Kita had given him only hours before. It was a sensation that told him something bad was coming.

"Kita," he said, his voice gentler than before. "Please, listen to me. I need you to head back to the village. I just need some time to think about what you said. You're asking quite a lot," he grimaced.

Kitana squinted. "You're lying," she pointed out sharply.

"That's chance you'll have to take. Just please head back and wait for me there."

"Is something wrong?" Kitana asked as she walked up to the Uchiha and carefully cupped his face.

"Everything's fine," he replied, mimicking her actions and placing his hands on her cheeks. "Just _please_ do what I say. We'll talk when I get back."

"Okay," she agreed reluctantly and started assembling her clothes.

Once she was fully dressed she turned to Sasuke and peered deep into his onyx eyes. "I really hope you make the right decision," she whispered before she made her way out of the cave and disappeared into the thick forest.

Sasuke waited a while before he too exited the cave. He quickly made his way up a tree and started to move in the direction the chakra that had alerted him had come from. He swiftly made his way through the forest until he found himself at the edge of a wide open, rocky plain. He descended from a tree branch to the ground and waited there.

The chakra he was sensing was dark, and felt exceptionally powerful. It was a common misconception that only sensory type Shinobi were able of sensing chakra. Granted, they were much more skilled, and thus more accurate, in categorizing chakra, detecting it and the sorts. But essentially every other Shinobi possessed the fundamental ability to sense strong chakras that were usually associated with danger without much difficulty. As soon as Sasuke had sensed the presence of this particular chakra, he had known he had to get Kitana away from it, even if it had meant telling her something he didn't support at all. He had no intention whatsoever of forsaking the mission he had bestowed upon himself so many years ago. Better yet, he was more determined than ever to fulfill it.

Suddenly Sasuke's attention was attracted by the rustling of bushes a few feet away from him.

The Uchiha squinted as slowly a form dressed in a black robe with red cloud emerged from the vegetation and slowly advanced onto him.

"Show yourself, who are you?"


	9. Chapter 9 Crossroads of Destiny

**Author Notes:Ladies and gentlemen, here's is chapter 9 of TPB! It's been a while (as usual), but here is the long awaited next installment!  
**

**Again, feel free to message and review. I'm open to anything that will help improve my writing. But if you just want to tell me how awesome the story is, that fine too! I'd really like to know how i'm doing so far...**

**In chapter 9, both Sasuke and Kitana are faced with choices that will determine the course of their future... Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Other than Kitana Izanaki, I don't own anything..**

* * *

**Chapter 9 – Crossroads of Destiny**

The moment Kitana had spotted a big white blue flash in the sky near the waterfall where Sasuke and she had parted ways, she had known something was wrong. She had sensed that Sasuke had sent her back to the Okoshi Inn in order to protect her from something and she had trusted him to able of taking care of whatever it was by himself, but this whole situation had looked bad. Thus, Kita had turned around and headed off to where the surge of light had come from.

Now she had gotten to the site where the flash of light had come from she had found herself to be in the presence of a giant purple snake lying on the ground. It was dead. At its side lay Sasuke, weak and obviously injured, as his comrades surrounded him. Jugo, Karin and Suigetsu stood around Sasuke and demanded an explanation for what had happened.

"When your chakra suddenly disappeared, I was wondering what happened. Did you fly?" Karin inquired.

"He got inside Manda with a space-time ninjutsu to escape," Suigetsu explained shaking his head. "That I can understand… But why are you all messed up?" he asked, turning to Sasuke.

Sasuke sighed before answering Suigetsu's question, flinching at the pain taking a deep breath caused him. "Just before we flew off, Manda and I were hit by a blast. My opponent was from the Akatsuki, so he was stronger than I expected."

"That is always the problem with you, isn't it?" Sasuke heard a voice say from behind his companions.

Kitana stepped out in front of him, her eyes burning with apparent anger.

"You never fail to overestimate yourself, do you? The mighty Sasuke Uchiha, the Shinobi prodigy, the Leaf's marvel that never disappoints? And look at you now, all beaten up and broken. You are in no position to go head to head with your brother any time soon if you ask me. And to think _you're_ the one who killed Orochimaru," she spat.

The Uchiha looked at her intently as he struggled to get to his feet.

"Orochimaru was already weakened. That's all there is to it. When the time comes for me to face _Him_, I will do whatever is necessary to complete my goal. That's all there is to _that_," Sasuke spoke determined as he looked Kitana dead in the eyes.

"What ever happened to thinking about what I asked you?" she rebutted mockingly.

The Uchiha simply looked at Kitana, but said nothing.

"Okay…" Jugo interrupted. "We should take Sasuke back to the inn. He needs some rest. Frankly I think we all do."

"You know," Karin started when the fellowship found itself back at the room at the Okoshi Inn, "you act high and mighty about wanting to kill Itachi, but if you keep messing yourself up like this, you won't be going anywhere." She crossed her arms as she looked down on Sasuke.

Kitana snorted. "See? Even your bitch is losing faith in you," she stated.

"What was that?! You want a piece of me, you little dipshit?! Let's go then!" Karin snapped as she advanced on Kitana.

"Kitana!" Sasuke thundered, and regretted it immediately when he felt a sharp pain shoot in his side. He flinched and took a moment to compose himself. He took in a deep breath before resuming his sentence.

"We need some more supplies from the market. Would it be too much trouble for you to go out and get some?" Sasuke asked, trying his best to maintain at least some degree of weight over her. Sadly, he had failed miserably.

"Do I look like your maid?" Kita shot back. "Ginger over there may be quivering to fulfill your every need, but I most certainly am not."

"Please," Sasuke added. His onyx eyes grew somewhat softer and for some strange reason calmed the visibly agitated Kitana down.

"Fine," she grunted reluctantly. "What do you need?"

"Food. Bandages. Some water for the road." Jugo answered for the exhausted Uchiha.

"Fine. I'll be right back," Kita said before she gathered her things and walked out the door.

Suigetsu stretched out against the wall where he'd been sitting. "Well, we've been traveling non-stop for quite some time. Now would be a good chance to get some rest.

"There will be no resting. Did you obtain any information on Itachi?" Sasuke inquired.

Karin frowned at that and cocked her head. "You're a bit too screwed up to try and be bossy, you know!" she stated, but the others ignored her.

Suigetsu was the first to speak. "I got some information on the Akatsuki, but nothing specific on Itachi."

"I got zero," Karin admitted reluctantly.

"It seems they're aiming for specific targets. People with a special type of chakra," Suigetsu continued again ignoring his nemesis.

"A special type of chakra?" Sasuke repeated questioningly. What could that mean? What kind of special chakra? Whatever it was, it must have been powerful, important enough to kill for.

After a few moments of silence, Jugo spoke up. "After talking to a few animals, I was able to discover some of their hideouts. The animals are always sensing a huge, sinister chakra coming from those hideouts. That's what the animals are saying."

Suigetsu snickered at that. "So even those retarded animals can sense chakra, huh? Or, maybe it's due to the fact that they _are_ retarded. Just like Karin, eh?"

"You little sack of shit!" Karin spat as she spun towards Suigetsu. Her fists were clenched as she gritted her teeth, her eyes seething with rage. However, all of the sudden her demeanor changed as if her focus had suddenly been attracted by something, something that required all of her attention.

"This feeling… They are coming. And fast," she muttered. "One, two… and they're chakra's really strong too. Not all of it human either. Dogs? So they might be tracking us by our scent…"

"Who is?" Sasuke demanded as he carefully sat upright.

"I believe it might be the Leaf."

"Then it's time for us to leave. Gather your things. We're heading out," the Uchiha commanded.

"Shouldn't we wait until Kitana gets back?" Jugo suggested.

Sasuke slowly got onto his feet and leant against the wall for support. "No. It would be better if we didn't. We will follow up on your intel, Jugo. Lead us to the nearest hideout."

"Are you sure?" Jugo pressed.

"Itachi is our only priority." Sasuke narrowed his eyes at his gentle-hearted companion and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Lead us to the nearest hideout."

* * *

"Naruto!" Sakura called out when she saw her teammate approaching the crater site she had been examining with her fellow Shinobi.

"Seems like that explosion's caught everyone's attention," Captain Yamato uttered.

"You guys, what happened?" Naruto inquired as he quickly scanned the area.

"There's evidence Sasuke was here until just before we arrived," Sakura explained.

"It's very faint, but his scent is definitely here. Also, I can detect several other scents as well, Kitana's being one of them," Kiba added with a grim look on his face.

"What does that mean?" Naruto pressed.

Shino Aburame , who had kept himself on the background so far, cut in. "By the look of this crater, a battle was fought here. Sasuke isn't travelling by himself now. He has companions travelling with him as well. Must be his accomplices."

Kakashi frowned and nodded his head. "Yes, Sasuke probably formed a team. Also, I know that one of the scents here belongs to Deidara, a member of the Akatsuki."

Sakura frowned. "Wasn't he the one who self-destructed and was sent to another dimension by your jutsu?"

"I thought so, but it seems that he faked his own death to escape. Now, the Akatsuki operate in two men teams, so there should be three left and Sasuke is in a team of his own."

"I don't care how many there are," Naruto called out, impatient as ever. "Let's just get moving and track down Sasuke's scent!"

"Sorry, I'm afraid we can't do that," one of the ninja hounds accompanying them on their mission uttered.

"What? Why not?!" Naruto demanded.

"The trail goes cold here," Kakashi replied.

The others watched on as Naruto visibly grew increasingly agitated. "And what does that mean?"

Kiba snarled, closed his eyes, attempting to draw out the noise Naruto insisted to make and tried to focus. If he wanted to find Kitana, he had to find Sasuke first. And he needed to do it fast.

"I'd say in this case that either Sasuke was completely annihilated in that explosion, or he used a transportation technique to escape it before it went off."

For a moment Kiba Inuzuka was completely focused and in complete sync with nature. He abruptly opened his eyes and turned to his comrades. "It was probably the latter. I made my sense of smell even keener than a dog's. I think I've found Sasuke," Kiba stated. "It's this way. I'm sure. From his scent I can tell he stopped moving. I think he's resting after his battle."

"This is our chance," Kakashi muttered and signaled the group to start the pursuit. After a few minutes, Naruto caught up to Kiba.

"Kiba, what's the story?" he demanded

"Will you cut it out?! Sasuke's scent is faint and fading. I need to concentrate, so shut up and stop distracting me!" the Inuzuka barked. What was that idiot thinking? Kiba wanted to find Sasuke just as bad as the rest of them did. But bugging the dog user wasn't going to help anyone. Suddenly Kiba flinched.

"Kiba, what is it?" Naruto inquired.

Kiba squinted. "It's Sasuke. Damn it! It seems he's on the move! Hold on. Something's wrong… Sasuke's scent is becoming more diffuse now. It's like it's scattering outward in every direction all at the same time."

"He sensed our movements. It's some kind of strategic countermeasure," Kakashi decided.

"He sensed us? But how?" Sakura asked no one in particular.

"I don't know exactly," Kakashi admitted. "But I think it's safe to assume that he has a skilled sensory ninja on his team."

"His scent is spreading too far and I'm the only one who can track him. But I don't know which scent to follow. What do we do?" Kiba questioned. Naruto growled and made a familiar hand sign.

"I'm gonna find him, even if I have to search every plain of grass. I'll do whatever it takes, just watch… Multi shadow clone jutsu!"

* * *

It had taken Kitana no more than half an hour to gather the supplies needed to last the group for a few days and now she made her way back to the inn. She couldn't help but feel like whatever hope she had of stopping Sasuke from doing something incredibly stupid was fading with every passing second. No matter what she said or did to him, he wouldn't budge. He remained convinced that Itachi was evil and that he needed to pay for the crimes he had committed. If they were ever even crimes.

It was unbelievable to Kitana that someone as soft as Sasuke was when he was with her, could be so cold wherever anyone else was concerned. She thought of how gentle he had been underneath that waterfall, how he had softly kissed and caressed her, how his warm breath on her skin had sent shivers down her spine. And how completely at peace he had seemed when they had been lying in each other's arms. In those moments, any desire for revenge had seemed to have faded and all he had wanted was her. But now… once again all the tables had been turned and Kitana realized that very soon she would be presented with a choice. However, she was hoping, for Sasuke's sake, he wouldn't force her to make one.

Kitana walked into the Okoshi inn, ascended the stairs and opened the door to their room. Once she stepped inside, however, she discovered the quarters to be completely abandoned. Sasuke, Jugo, Suigetsu and Karin… They were all gone.

"Son of a bitch!" Kitana exclaimed infuriated as she threw down the groceries, exited the room and slammed the door behind her.

* * *

Karin, Suigetsu and Jugo sat and waited for Sasuke to emerge from the Akatsuki hideout he had set off to explore. He had been away for a little while, and his companions were starting to get worried. Not only because of the fact that the injuries he had sustained during his battle with the Akatsuki member just hours before had not had the chance to heal properly, but also because taking on Itachi would have been a near impossible task even if he had in shape.

"I wonder if Sasuke is okay," Suigetsu pondered out loud.

"What does that mean?" Karin snapped.

"What do you think? What if the first Akatsuki hideout we try is a bull's eye?"

"What are you saying? That Itachi is in this hideout?" Jugo inquired.

"I don't know…" Suigetsu admitted and shrugged. "I only said what if… This Itachi is supposed to be pretty strong isn't he?"

"No! There's no way that Sasuke could lose to him. No way…" Karin defended the object of her affection.

"Well, I hope not, but maybe we should be planning for the worst case scenario here," Suigetsu suggested. But Karin was obviously upset.

"Okay, I'm going to check inside. If anything happens, we're going in!" she declared and started to make her way to the entrance. Just then, Sasuke walked out.

"I thought I told you not to move until I gave the order," the Uchiha said with a sideward glance at Karin as he passed her. Karin opened her mouth to answer, but the Uchiha cut her off. "Never mind. Just follow me… Let's go!"

As Sasuke and his companions rushed on ahead through the thick forest, Karin grew more and more anxious. Her eyes shifted from left to right as several different types of chakra closed in on them. First there had been a shadow clone of a blond-haired Shinobi in an orange jumpsuit, someone Sasuke had referred to as Naruto. More of this Naruto's shadow clones surrounded them, however still being quite some distance away from the group. Then there were two other chakras behind them, slowly but surely gaining on them. In the meantime the Uchiha and his companions had reached the edge of the forest where a great temple emerged from the thick roof of leaves. As the Shinobi leapt from the tree branches onto the stone roof of the temple and rushed on, Karin was suddenly taken aback by an alarming sensation.

"What is this?" she exclaimed. "It's a humongous chakra and it's fast too… Incoming!" she warned her comrades as a cloaked figure dashed in front of them on the roof and menacingly swung a sword the size of an adult male over his broad shoulders. His skin was scaly and blue, gills visible on his cheeks, his dark blue hair spiked up. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the sight of the black cloak decorated with red clouds. He knew those robes.

"I know you…" Suigetsu started with narrowed eyes. "You are Kisame Hoshigaki."

Kisame grinned. "Only Sasuke and Sasuke alone may go beyond this point… Itachi's orders, so that's how it's going to be. The rest of you are welcome to wait right here with me," he informed the anxious Shinobi.

"Alright, fine," Sasuke agreed calmly. "Besides, the only reason I've been travelling with a team is so nothing would get in the way of my reaching my destination. It's fine."

Karin grabbed the Uchiha's arm and shook it as if trying to shake some sense into him. "Sasuke, you can't do this. Let's take him down and go in there together," she pleaded.

Kisame smirked at that and shook his head. "I have no intention of or have interest in fighting all of you, but if you insist on going with him I'll show you no mercy," he insured the comrades dangerously.

Sasuke set a step forward and looked at Karin from the corner of his eye. "Karin, you need to stay put. This vendetta is mine alone," he said, his voice calm and steady as always. And with that he took off. He ignored the shouts of Karin and Suigetsu as they unsuccessfully tried to bypass Kisame in order to follow him and went ahead to where he knew Itachi would be. It had been so long, he had trained so hard, suffered so much. All for this very moment. The final battle. His redemption. His revenge.

But the Uchiha would have to hurdle one last obstacle before he was to reach his destination. Out of nowhere a stone wall erupted from the earth before him, rising high into the air and blocking his path. He turned around to face the girl who was no doubt responsible for this most unwelcome delay.

"You shouldn't be here," he said to her with grave eyes. "I never meant for you to witness this."

Kitana snorted. "As if I wouldn't see the images etched into my mind regardless of my being here or not. If anyone shouldn't be here it's you. You're making a huge mistake, Sasuke."

The Uchiha ignored her remark. "How did you get here so quickly?" he asked instead.

"Tsuki," she replied.

For a few moment they stood there gazing at one another, the realization of what was about to happen etching grim looks on their faces. Kitana spoke first.

"Don't make me do this," she pleaded with Sasuke in a desperate voice completely unlike her usual strong and fearless tone. It reflected every bit a desperation and anguish she felt in that moment, surrounded by the rocks and trees between the stone temple where Sasuke's companions stood waiting and another great stone structure Kitana knew to be the old Uchiha hideout.

"We have always known I had to do this. This is what I've lived for all this time," Sasuke responded, but Kitana shook her head.

"You could have lived for me! We could be happy! All you have to do is take hold of my hand and we will leave. We will go to the end of the earth if we have to, at least we'll be together. I will be there for you in ways I never was before, I will be everything you need. I will even try to bear with that ginger tramp you drag with you everywhere you go, I promise. But don't leave now."

"I want you to listen to me," Sasuke said solemnly. "I love you. More than anything else in this world. I leave you now only to come back to you when all this is over. When I return, and I promise I will, we will build a new life together, have a family. We will be happy at last and all of this will be forgotten. That is what I'm doing this for. I'm may be doing this for my clan, my parents, but I'm doing it for our future too. As long as _He_ lives I can never move on. As long as _He_ lives _we_ can never move on."

Kitana shot him an intense glare. "Don't make this about us. It never was. This is about you and your stupid pride and your stupid revenge and lack of trust in me. It is very obvious that I am not enough for you. I never was and I never will be. I understand that now," she said as a single tear trickled down her cheek. "And since you have made your choice, I'll make mine. When you leave this spot you will be dead to me. There is no need to make promises of a future filled with love, because if you kill your brother, if you kill Itachi, I will hate you forever. I will never forgive you and you will have to live with that," Kitana stated, her midnight blue eyes now cold and harsh.

Sasuke looked at her sadly. "Is that so?" he said softly. "It doesn't really matter though. Because you can hate me all you want, but I will always love _you_. Regardless of what happens today I will never stop loving you. I will wait for you forever if I have to. I know the love that exist between us _will_ never and _can_ never cease to exist. After all, once you start loving someone, can you ever really stop?"

Kitana flinched as Sasuke used the words that she had spoken to him by the campfire on the night that she had come to him in the woods against her. Her already dark eyes grew even darker as she spoke.

"Well then. I see you've taken it upon you to prove me wrong."

"Nothing of the sort," Sasuke said with a grimace. "Time will show both of us just how right you were."

Again the two of them stood there in silence. This time Sasuke was the first to speak.

"I suppose this is goodbye for now," he said, looking at Kitana gravely and for a moment Kita could have sworn she had seen his crimson eyes. "I love you, Kita."

"Don't be stupid!" she exclaimed in response. "Don't force me to stop you!"

But as soon as the words had left her lips, Sasuke turned away from her and headed off. Kitana's heart sped up dangerously as she wove a quick series of handseals. Immediately water seemed to appear out of sheer air, forming a long strand that lashed dangerously at the ground where Sasuke was treading.

"Stop!" Kitana demanded, but it took the Uchiha little effort to dodge her water whip and he was still on his merry way. Kitana again wove several handsigns, then quickly squatted down and placed a spread palm on the ground. At her touch the ground began to quake violently and the solid ground around Sasuke feet suddenly fell apart in grains of loose sand. For a moment Sasuke felt his feet sink a few inches in to the sand as Kitana manipulated the water she had gathered earlier towards the sand beneath his feet. Sasuke channeled his chakra to his feet attempting to walk on the sand as he did on water, but somehow Kitana's jutsu did not allow this. The Uchiha then pulled one foot out of the sand as he still sank deeper, prodding the surround soil unsuccessfully trying to find solid ground. As Kitana's stream of water reached the sand and mingled with the grains, Sasuke felt a thick mud surround him. He had now sunken in to the quicksand as far as up to his waist and watched Kitana as she sat down on one knee next to him where the earth had still been hard. Again she spread her palm on the ground and Sasuke felt the ground around him solidify.

"You have no idea how much it pains me to do this," she said as her eyes fell to the ground.

"What makes you think you've done anything?" Sasuke voice echoed in the distance.

* * *

_It was a clear day in the Hidden Leaf Village when three young Shinobi trained in the woods and honed their skills. Sasuke watched in awe as his older brother launched himself into the air, backflipped and threw a bunch of shuriken in targets scattered around the training area. Of course, his brother didn't miss a single shot._

"_Wow, Itachi, you nailed every target. Even the one in the blind spot behind the rock!" the little Uchiha chimed._

"_Ha!" Kitana called out as she jumped up from the rock she'd been sitting on, observing Itachi's demonstration. "I can do that."_

_Itachi chuckled and patted his young friend on the head. "I'm sure you can, Kita."_

_Sasuke huffed and crossed his arms. "As if! There's no way you're as good as my big brother," he stated, narrowing his eyes at Kita._

"_O, I'll show you!" Kita smirked as she took position. Then she launched herself like Itachi had done just moments before, although she didn't get nearly as high as he did, threw her Kunai and landed back on her feet to assess the accuracy of her aim. Much to her discontent, she had managed to hit five out of eight targets. The young girl frowned in disappointment._

_Sasuke erupted in laughter. "See? I told you! You are no match for my brother," he chuckled in amusement. Kitana glared at him in response and clenched her fists._

_Itachi looked at his little brother sternly. "Now, now, Sasuke. Leave her alone," Itachi said and gave Sasuke a pat on the back. "You did very well, Kita. For someone your age, your skills are more than impressive."_

_Kitana smirked and crossed her arms defiantly at Sasuke. "You heard that? Very impressive. I'd like to see you do better."_

_Sasuke gritted his teeth and grabbed a shuriken. "Alright, now it's my turn," he declared as he got in position, but his brother stopped him._

"_No, Sasuke. It's time to go," he said. The younger Uchiha frowned as he looked up at his brother._

"_What happened to the new shuriken jutsu you promised to teach me, huh?"_

"_It will have to wait. I have an important mission tomorrow. I must prepare," Itachi explained._

"_You're such a big fat liar," Sasuke called out in disappointment and turned his face away from his brother._

"_Hey!" Kitana interfered. "Don't call him a liar!" she called out as she pointed a finger at Sasuke accusingly._

_Itachi smiled softly and beckoned his little brother to come to him. When he did, Itachi smiled down at him and gently poked him in the head. "Sorry, Sasuke. Maybe some other time."_

_Kita grinned. "I think that is code for 'I'm trying to spare you the humiliation of losing to a girl'," she teased._

"_No way I'd ever lose to you! Okay, just watch this!" Sasuke called out and got ready to hit the targets._

"_Hey! Be careful!" Itachi warned, but it was already too late._

"_Hahahaha! You're such a loser!" Kitana mocked Sasuke as Itachi carried his little brother home on his back. "Acting all high and mighty about how you're not gonna lose out to a girl and then tripping and twisting your ankle…"_

"_Kitana," Itachi said sternly. "Be nice. That can happen to anyone."_

_Kita snorted. "It wouldn't have happened to you," she stated bluntly._

_Sasuke sighed and lowered his head. "She's right. It wouldn't have happened to you. That's why Father only cares about you, Itachi," Sasuke whispered sadly._

_Kitana frowned and looked at the brothers apologetically as she continued to walk beside them._

"_You probably hate me, huh?" Itachi asked Sasuke with a soft smile. "It's alright. People often think ill of Shinobi. It's only logical."_

_Sasuke quickly shook his head. "That's not how I feel…"_

_Itachi's eyes grew dark as he stared blankly ahead and Kitana closely observed him when he started talking. "Being the best is not all it's crapped up to be. When you have power you become arrogant and isolated from the world, no matter how coveted and sought after you are in the beginning. But with us it's different, because you and I are flesh and blood. I'm always going to be there for you, Sasuke, even if it's only as an obstacle for you to overcome. Even if you do hate me… That's what big brothers are for."_

"_Itachi…" Kitana said softly. "Sasuke could never hate you. And neither can I."_

_The Uchiha grimaced at his friend. "He can. And he will. Someday. But it puts my heart at ease to know that when he does, you will be there for him. You will save him."_

"_Her?! Save me?! I don't think so. I can take care of myself," Sasuke argued, but Itachi shook his head._

"_The two of you may not fully understand it yet, but there is something between you. An unbreakable bond. And when the time comes, when no one else can get through to your heart, she will save you. In more ways than you can imagine. I am more certain of this than anything."_

"_How can you be so sure?" Kitana inquired skeptically as she cocked an eyebrow. Sasuke merely frowned as he awaited his brother's answer._

_Itachi smiled softly. "Because even now, I can see the deep affection you have for one another. And I can also see that it will never fade."_

"_Ew!" Sasuke and Kita called out in unison. "Why do you keep insisting on that?! We're not in love! Love is for wimps and girls!" Sasuke called out in disbelieve. _

"_I _am_ a girl, you idiot," Kitana countered._

"_So you _are_ in love with me?! That's gross!" the young Uchiha yelled out in terror._

"_I didn't say that!" Kitana screeched defensively. "Itachi, tell him!"_

_The older Uchiha chuckled. "Now, now, you two… there's no need for you to worry about any of that right now. Everything will fall into place when you get older."_

* * *

_Everything will fall into place when you get older._

_When you get older._

_Older._

Something was wrong. Kitana could clearly sense it now. What she was seeing had been real, but it wasn't reality. It wasn't in the present. It was a memory. Or better yet the illusion of a memory. But how? The last thing she remembered seeing was Sasuke's crimson eyes. Crimson? His Sharingan! That bastard had caught her in his genjutsu the moment he had said his goodbyes to her! The jutsu she had used to stop him, it had all been an illusion. And then the jerk had stuck her in one of her own memories. Probably to buy himself more time. How long had she been out? And what had happened in the meantime? Kita feared her own questions.

Suddenly Kitana seethed with anger and she was once again fully aware of her surroundings and the state she was in. She couldn't believe she'd let Sasuke entrap her like this. Distracting her with memories of a time in which all of them had been genuinely happy. But his little trick was over. And she was now more determined than ever to take him down.

"Release!" Kita called out as she quickly wove a series of hand signs and liberated herself from the Sasuke's illusion.

She immediately looked around and scanned the area for any trace of the Uchiha and it didn't take her long to locate them. Not far from her was the Uchiha hideout. Or what was left of it anyway. On the roof she could see a bright ball of lightning and she guessed it was Sasuke's chidori. But there was something different about it. It was drawing power from the lightning being emitted from a thundercloud hovering above the building, and taking the shape of a great blue dragon. Kita had no idea what kind of attack Sasuke was preparing, but she had a bad feeling about it.

Then suddenly something else on the roof attracted her attention. Something she hadn't seen in a very long time… Susano'o! A jolt of unease raged through Kita's body as a paralyzing realization dawned on her. This was the end. Itachi would not have conjured Susano'o unless he genuinely believed it to be his last resort. The lightning dragon seemed to have reached full force when it changed direction and clashed with Itachi's Susano'o in a surge of bright light.

"I have to move now," Kitana forced herself to move onward. Itachi needed her. She had to stop this before it was too late. She bolted off in the direction of the hideout and prayed to God she'd get there in time. She refused to let things end like this, not after everything she had lost already. Not after all the pain she'd been through. She needed to make this right, no matter what Itachi said. She had kept his secret, she had done everything he'd asked her, but she wasn't going to let him die. She had no idea how to life with herself if she did.

As the dust around the hideout cleared Kitana couldn't see the Uchiha brothers anywhere. In a mere instant the once towering building that was the Uchiha hideout had been reduced to a plain of shattered rocks. And she couldn't see the Uchiha brothers anywhere amongst the rubble. Please, she silently pleaded. Please let them be alright.

Kita reached the wrecked hideout just in time to see a bruised and battered Itachi advance on his younger brother, his arm stretched towards Sasuke. They were obviously exhausted and both out of chakra.

"Itachi, no!" Kita cried out as she ran straight at him, but he didn't seem to notice her at all. Neither of them did. "Stop! Please stop!" she cried out again.

Itachi smiled softly at his brother and touched his forehead with his fingers.

"Sorry, Sasuke. This is the last time…" he spoke weakly and collapsed.

"No, no, no, no, no, no!" Kitana exclaimed frantically as she caught Itachi's body as it fell to the ground and shook it. "You can't be dead! You can't be dead!" she repeatedly sniffed. Kitana quickly recomposed herself and placed her hands over his chest, forcing her chakra into his body, desperately trying to fix whatever damage Sasuke had inflicted upon him. But there was no response, no resistance of Itachi's body to the infiltration of her chakra. And Kitana knew that could only mean one thing.

The sky above them grew dark and rain started pouring down on the plain.

Sasuke stared blankly ahead, slowly slid down to the ground and collapsed next to his brother's corpse. It was over. Everything he'd been fighting for, training for all these years. Everything he had sacrificed. It had all become a full circle. Itachi was dead. He had finally gotten his revenge. But why didn't he feel any better? Why did he feel so empty? Was this all even real? Maybe it wasn't. Maybe this too had all been one great genjutsu. Was such a thing even possible? No, he decided. It had all really happened. It really was over. Now he could move on with his life. Restore his clan. Be happy. Be free of the burden he had shouldered all those years. Free to be with the woman he loved. With Kita.

Kita?

Sasuke slowly turned his head and there she was. Right next to him, shaking Itachi's corpse and crying out his name, as if she was trying to awaken him from a deep slumber, but then she abruptly stopped. She too had realized he wasn't asleep or unconscious. He was dead. Suddenly Kitana jerked her head up and glared at Sasuke menacingly. "What did you do?!" she thundered as tears streamed over her cheeks. "What did you do?! I hate you! I hate you! I fucking hate you! It should have been you! It will be! I will kill you for this!" Her tears were masked by the rain that poured down on her face.

Sasuke turned his gaze back towards the sky as the rain soaked his clothes and felt he was about to drift off. The intensity of everything that had happened finally caught up to him. Exhaustion overtook him and the last thing he heard before he lost consciousness was Kitana's voice telling him she'd never forgive him.

For what seemed forever, Kitana sat by Itachi's body, desperately holding onto his shirt, sobbing uncontrollably, asking herself everything she should have done to prevent this. She had kept her word to her friend, honored his trust in her, but at what cost? Was her loyalty really worth his life? It shouldn't have been. If she had the chance to do this all over again she would have chosen betrayal over seeing him die in a heartbeat. She had never wanted this. Never this. She had been so sure that in the end, she would be able to make a difference. But she hadn't. And she'd have to life with that for her entire life. She'd have to life without him for her entire life. Without both of them.

"So… it is done then. It seems Sasuke was victorious," Kitana suddenly heard a menacing voice say behind her. She quickly turned her head in to the direction the voice had come from. It was a man. A man in a black cloak decorated with red clouds. His face was covered with only his right eye being visible through a hole in his orange spiral mask. "I will take them now," the man declared.

Kitana quickly got to her feet. "I will not let you take him," she rebutted as she grabbed a kunai and positioned herself in front of Itachi's corpse defensively. Just as she made a move towards the cloaked figure, the man dissolved into nothingness. Kita frantically looked around but there was no trace of him. Where did he go? she quietly asked herself.

"I hope you've said you goodbyes,' the man's voice uttered from behind her as he reappeared between Sasuke and Itachi. He threw Sasuke over his shoulder and pulled up Itachi's body by his shirt.

"Take your filthy hands off him!" Kitana snarled and tried to grab Itachi, but once again the man started to disappear into thin air, this time taking the Uchiha with them. "Stop!" Kita cried out. "What are you doing?!" She caught hold of Itachi's shirt as well and hung on for dear life. Then there was a tearing sound and a metallic snap and in an instant the cloaked man and both Sasuke and Itachi were gone. The only thing left of her friend were a torn piece of cloth and a broken necklace. She had failed. Again.

* * *

"Kiba, wait up!" Naruto called out to his comrade, but rather than slowing down Kiba sped up his pace. He could smell Kita clearly now and she was not far away from him. The dog user could detect a hint of Sasuke's scent there as well, but it wasn't as strong a Kitana's, telling Kiba he had most likely taken off already. There was another scent, an odor that greatly unsettled Kiba. Blood. He just couldn't make out who it belonged to. All the more reason to get to Kitana quickly.

"Kiba!" Kakashi called him back, but he too was completely ignored by the determined Inuzuka.

"Faster, Akamaru," Kiba whispered to his canine to which Akamaru immediately responded by accelerating his pace.

As the trees faded and they moved onto a rocky plane, the scent of blood became increasingly intense. As did Kiba's uneasiness as he continued to rush ahead on Akamaru's back. And finally, there in the midst of shattered rocks she sat on the ground.

"Kita!" Kiba called out as he descended from Akamaru's back and ran off towards his friend. But she didn't respond. She just sat there frozen, staring ahead, trembling, yet she didn't make a sound.

Kiba knelt down by her side and laid a hand on her shoulder.

"Are you alright?" he inquired as he quickly scanned her body for any present injuries. "Are you hurt?" he pressed and still Kita didn't respond.

"Kiba," he heard Kakashi's deep voice say behind him when the others had finally caught up to him. "Step back from her." Again Kiba ignored him and continued to check on his friend.

"Kita, what's this?" he asked while trying to take hold of the necklace in Kitana's hands. Immediately Kitana snapped out of whatever trance she had been in and smacked Kiba's hand away from her own, catching him completely off guard.

"Don't touch me!" she snapped and glared at the Inuzuka, but her friend advanced on her again, this time more forcefully.

"Sasuke's scent is all over you. What did you do? What happened?" Kiba pressed as he cupped her face forcing her to face him. Kita lowered her head and her eyes grew watery when she laid her eyes on the necklace in her hands.

"Kita!" Kiba yelled at her as he pulled her face back up. She said nothing, but her eyes told him everything he needed to know. His eyes grew dark as he sighed and let go of her. "I'm sorry," he said softly.

"All this time," Kita started in a fragile, shaky voice that didn't even seem to belong to her. "All this time I thought that when it would matter most I would be able to make a difference. That I could change the course of things that have been predetermined years ago. That I would have been enough for… for him. But I wasn't. I never was. And now he's gone. And I did nothing, Kiba," Kitana rambled and averted her eyes to the ground.

"I don't believe that. You came here for a reason. You wanted to help, I know you did. But Itachi is beyond helping and so is Sasuke," Kiba tried to put her at ease. Unfortunately for him, his words had the adverse effect.

"Sasuke is a murderer! And I was arrogant to think that I could change that. I offered him a choice and he made the wrong one. He could've had… he killed my best friend, Kiba," Kita said as tears built up in her eyes until finally they rolled onto her cheeks.

"I'm sorry, Kita. I really am," Kiba murmured sincerely as he laid a hand on her shoulder. He frowned when his friend looked up at him, tears streaming over her cheeks, and his heart broke when she threw herself against his chest and started sobbing uncontrollably. He wanted to help her, make her feel better, but he knew nothing he could do would ever make a difference. All he could do was be there with her and hope for the love of God he wouldn't say anything that could make it worse. Luckily for Kiba, Kakashi did it for him.

"Kitana, I know this is hard for you, but you need to tell us what happened here," he said in his usual serene voice.

"Would you give her a break?!" Kiba snapped at his sensei, still holding his crying friend in his arms. "Can't this wait until later?"

"It can't," Naruto interfered, his voice gloomy. "If we head off now we might still get to Sasuke before he goes off our radar again."

"You won't find him. It's too late," Kitana spoke in a tiny voice. "I had one final chance to stop him from doing something incredibly stupid, but I honestly don't give a damn about what happens to him now. I don't care what promises I made in the past, he is not my problem anymore. And I don't care what promises he made, I'm not his problem anymore either."

Kiba frowned. "What are you talking about?" he asked confusedly.

"Nothing," Kita replied, obviously regretting she had said anything. "Forget I said anything."

But Kiba had no intention of letting this go just yet. "I don't think so. When you left the village I thought you'd set out to find Itachi and warn him about Sasuke. But you never meant to find Itachi. You went looking for Sasuke, didn't you? And by the smell of you, you found him. So what happened when you did?" Kiba pressed.

"We talked," Kitana defended herself as she pulled herself out of Kiba's embrace and got onto her feet.

"You talked?" Kiba chuckled. "About what?"

"About all kinds of things," Kita responded evasively.

"What kind of things? About Itachi?"

"Yes."

"What did you say to him?"

"I asked him not to kill Itachi."

"Did you sleep with him?"

"Of course not! The last time I saw him I was still a kid! What does this have to do with anything anyway?"

"Not with Itachi, with Sasuke…"

"No."

"You're lying…"

"I'm not."

"Yes, you are. You're a terrible liar. You thought that if Sasuke fell in love with you, he might not kill his brother. So you slept with him."

"That is not what happened!" Kitana called out pointing a finger at Kiba accusingly.

"Then explain to me what did!" Kiba yelled back. "Explain to me why even after all this time you are unconditionally defending a man who is responsible for the massacre of his clan, but you somehow condemn his brother for wanting to take revenge. Explain to me why you would go to these extremes in order to protect him."

"You don't know him like I do, Kiba…"

"What you mean is that I don't know what you know _about_ him. Why don't you enlighten me?"

Kitana sniffed as another tear rolled down her cheek. "I'm done talking about this. I just lost a friend. Again... Can we please just go home?" she asked.

Kiba huffed and turned his head away. A deep frown lay on Kita's face as she walked toward her friend and turned his head to face her. "Kiba, please. Someday soon this will all become very clear to you. I'm sure of that. Things have been set in motion now that cannot be undone. The cards have been laid out for all us, there's no turning back. No matter how much we want to. I know that now more than ever. All we can do is move on, become stronger and fight for what we believe in when the world as we know it will change."


	10. Chapter 10 Second Chances

**Author Notes: Ladies and gentlemen, here's is chapter 9 of TPB! It's been a while (as usual), but here is the long awaited next installment!**

**A special shout out to all of you that have left me a message or comment, it is very much appreciated! Again, feel free to message and review. I'm open to anything that will help improve my writing. But if you just want to tell me how awesome the story is, that fine too! I'd really like to know how i'm doing so far...**

**In chapter 10, The Hidden Leaf shinobi deal with the aftermath of the battle of the Uchiha and are faced with more bad news upon arriving home... Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Other than Kitana Izanaki, I don't own anything...**

* * *

**Chapter 10 – Second chances**

It had been a long journey back to the Hidden Leaf Village and during that trek, none of the Shinobi had been particularly talkative. The harsh reality of what had happened at the Uchiha hideout hung over the companionship as a thick smothering cloud and none of the Shinobi seemed to be able of thinking about anything other than what had transpired between the Uchiha brothers some days ago.

"Are you okay?" Kiba cautiously asked his friend as they walked ahead side by side, a little way behind the rest of the group. He dug his hands into his pockets and quickly glanced at her when she didn't answer. He sighed and remained silent. The leaves of the trees around them rustled in the wind and the sun brightly shone down on the group as they neared the outskirts of the Leaf Village.

"I am not okay," Kitana suddenly replied as she looked sideward at the Inuzuka. "And I might not be for a while. The past few days have been rather difficult for me. This journey has really confronted me with the harsh reality of the world we live in and the role we all have to play. I realize now that the one thing I refuse to ever be again, is powerless. Helpless. I don't ever want to feel that inadequate again. So completely useless."

Kiba shook his head. "The last thing you are is useless. There isn't a single person on this planet that means more to me than you do," he said as he looked up at the clear blue sky.

Kitana smiled softly. "You mean that, don't you?" she asked as she looked at him.

"I do," Kiba replied.

"I'm sorry, Kiba," Kitana uttered as she suddenly stopped walking. "I've made quite the habit out of disappointing you, haven't I?" she grimaced.

Kiba sighed. "Honestly," he started, "I'm more hurt than disappointed. I thought we'd been fine that morning after we had our talk, but apparently I was wrong. Apparently, even though you're the most important person in the world to me, I am not one of your priorities. When it comes down to the Uchiha, nothing else matters, does it?"

Kitana looked at Kiba gravely. "You don't understand, Kiba. And I'm not expecting you to. Because in order for you to understand I will need to explain certain things. Things that I can't talk about. Not because I don't trust you," she said glumly, "but because I made a promise once. A promise that I cannot, and will not, break."

"A promise to Itachi?" Kiba snarled, narrowing his eyes at Kitana.

For a moment Kitana opened her mouth to speak, but quickly decided against it and kept her silence as she continued to stride alongside the Inuzuka. She felt guilty towards him. Through all those long years, out of everyone she'd known, Kiba had been the one person who had never abandoned her and had never let her down. And all she had done in return was cause him pain, shutting him out, making him feel like he didn't matter to her. But he did. He mattered to her an awful lot. He always had. She'd thought it unnecessary to tell him that before, but something told her now that she should.

"Kiba wait," she said as she once again stood still, smiled softly and cupped Kiba's cheeks when he turned around to face her. "I know I haven't said what I'm about to say like this before, but trust me when I tell you that I've never felt anything other than what I feel for you today. I love you with all my heart and soul and not having you in my life for all these years has been more difficult than you can imagine. I know I've hurt you, disappointed you, angered you. But I plan on making up for that for the rest of our lives. You are the most loyal and dearest friend I have and I'm so sorry for everything."

The Inuzuka turned his eyes away from her. "I'm sure you are. Until the next Uchiha-drama. What then? What if Sasuke _needs_ you again?" he asked sharply.

In an instant Kitana pulled her hands away from Kiba as if his face had been made of hot metal that had scorched the delicate skin of her hands. She quickly started to pace forward to catch up with the rest of the group as she stared ahead absentmindedly. Kiba reluctantly followed her and gave her a puzzled look when he walked aside her once more.

"What is it with him? Why does he affect you so?" he inquired.

"He doesn't," Kitana snapped.

"Well, obviously he does!" Kiba exclaimed.

"He is none of my concern!" Kitana's voice thundered, causing the rest of the companionship to stop and turn to watch the arguing duo. Kitana's eyes were visibly burning with anger, pain and frustration and Kiba stood across from her, his arms crossed defiantly.

"Is that so? Than why did you abandon all of your friends –again- to be with him?!" Kiba pressed.

"You have no idea what you're talking about!" Kitana cried.

"Don't I?" Kiba chortled. "Apparently your absence in my life has led you to forget the capabilities of my nose. It's not that hard for me to deduce certain things, you know," he sneered.

"What exactly are you trying to say, Kiba?" Kitana snapped back.

"You know damn well what I'm saying! Do you really want me to say it in front of them?" he barked, motioning to the others.

"How dare you!" Kitana yelled as she jabbed Kiba in the shoulder. "How dare you! You have no idea what you're talking about! You don't know anything about us! I hate him for what he did! I will always hate him! And I don't give a shit about what happens to him now. I went to him in order to stop him from becoming what he is now. A murderer. And do you know what he did? He shoved my intentions right back into my fucking face! He chose revenge over trusting me. He chose killing his brother over believing what I told him. No matter what I said or did, in the end I didn't matter at all. How do you think that makes me feel, Kiba? I set off with the best intentions, to save two people I love from an awful fate and I ended up losing them both. And what's worse, the only thing the one friend I felt I had left can do is give me crap about it!" Kitana was now shaking slightly, on the brink of tears she desperately tried to force back.

Kiba's eyes softened as he laid an arm around her shoulder. "I'm sorry," he whispered and softly stroked her cheek. This seemed to settle her down a bit.

Suddenly Naruto approached the two of them with a sad expression on his face and even Kitana couldn't help but feel sorry for him. "He can still be saved, Kita," Naruto spoke as he looked at her intently.

"No," Kita replied bluntly, "he can't. The sooner you accept that the better. From here on out your friend will do horrible things, things that you never imagined him being capable of doing. But he will do it nonetheless. Because he can't or won't believe that he can be something other than what he is now. An avenger. He will soon learn things, things that will make him even more dangerous than he already is. He will seek to become more powerful and then he will come home. And when he does, I will be waiting."

Kitana now turned her gaze to the Copy Ninja Kakashi. "When we return to the village I will request a meeting with Lady Hokage," Kitana informed him and Kakashi's one visible eye glistened.

"That might be a good idea," Sakura uttered. "She will want to know what happened."

"I will tell her nothing of the sort," Kitana replied shortly.

"Than what will you see her for?" Hinata now asked in her tiny voice.

"To discuss my reinstatement," was Kitana's sole reply as she walked past her baffled companions and started the last part of the journey home.

* * *

It was near midday when the shinobi fellowship waited in silence before the heavy wooden doors of the Hokage's office. They had traveled the rest of the way to the Hidden Leaf Village in an uncomfortable silence, each of them unsure of what to say. The air among them had been gloomy, their hearts heavy and their minds unmistakably occupied, each with its own worries.

And now they stood out in the hallway, still in complete silence. Some of them leant wearily against the wall, some had slid down and sat quietly resting their arms on their knees, others paced around impatiently.

Kiba stood up straight, his back up against a wall, looking intently at Kitana who was sitting across from him, staring ahead with emotionless eyes. It pained him to see that look in her eyes. Again. Kiba wondered how it was possible for everything to be absolutely fine one day and then be completely screwed up in the blink of an eye. He wanted to comfort her, but he knew that nothing he could say would make her feel any better. He knew that it would take her quite some time to recover from yet another blow. He just hoped that this time she wouldn't push him away. He hoped that this time she'd let him be there for her, help her if he could and if he couldn't, that she'd at least let him take her mind off things.

All this went through the Inuzuka's mind when he suddenly felt a small hand on his shoulder. He turned his head sideward to see Hinata staring at him with concerned eyes. Kiba remained quiet, but gave his teammate a small reassuring smile as to tell her not to worry about him. He laid an arm around her shoulder as Hinata slowly laid her head on his.

They had stood like that for a few minutes when the heavy doors of the office opened and the Hokage's assistant Shizune appeared, a grave look etched into her face.

"Lady Tsunade will see you now," she spoke as she for motioned the shinobi to enter the room. Kakashi was the first to move and casually followed Shizune into the office. Yamato, Shino, Sakura and Naruto followed his example. Hinata cast a last look first at Kiba and then at Kitana, who was in no hurry to stand up from where she had been sitting, and walked in as well.

"Are you coming?" Kiba asked his friend, but she ignored him and continued to stare ahead blankly. With a sigh Kiba pushed himself away from the wall and walked up to her. "Hey," he said softly and extended his hand. "Let's get this over with, shall we?"

Kitana turned her head to face him, exhaled deeply and reluctantly took his hand. As Kiba pulled her up she gave him something that was probably supposed to pass for a small smile, but could hardly be called that. Kiba smiled softly in return and placed his hand on Kitana's back to usher her into Tsunade's office. Once they had entered, Kiba closed the doors behind them and joined the others. Kitana stood a little way behind them, listening to Kakashi, who was giving the Hokage a summarized account of everything that had happened.

Kitana looked at Lady Tsunade. She didn't look a day over 25, although Kitana was well aware that the Hokage was considerably older than that. Her jutsu must indeed have been formidable. Tsunade's abilities, as well as her beauty, were legendary and as a little girl Kitana had only been able to dream of ever meeting her. One of the legendary Sannin. O, what little Kitana would have given to have met her. And here she was. Standing in the presence of a legend. And Kitana felt nothing. She felt nothing because no matter how much she had wanted this, there now was something she wanted even more. She wanted her friend to be still alive. She wanted for _him_ to never have betrayed her. She wanted to stop being in pain all the time. She wanted things to be as simple as they once were. She wanted to be as happy she once was. But Kitana heavily doubted she would ever feel that happy ever again. She couldn't fathom what it would take for all of this pain to go away.

"Where is Sasuke now?" Tsunade's voice asked Kakashi. The use of the Uchiha's name immediately pulled Kitana's attention to the Hokage once more.

"We don't know. Once we'd arrived at the battle site he had disappeared already. It was like he had gone up in smoke," the Copy Ninja answered his superior.

"Hm, is that so?" Tsunade asked no one in particular. "What of Itachi's body?" she inquired.

"It is missing as well, Lady Hokage," Yamato replied as he stood by Kakashi's side.

Tsunade frowned. "This could be a problem. Who could have taken it?" she posed and looked intently at the shinobi in front of her. When her eyes fell on Kitana, the Hokage cocked an eyebrow.

"And who might this be?" she informed with a nod towards Kitana. Kitana said nothing and simply continued to stare back at Tsunade.

"This is Kitana Izanaki, Lady Hokage. She was a close friend of the Uchiha and the Third H-" Kakashi started, but Tsunade interrupted him.

"The Third Hokage's pupil. I thought she had withdrawn herself from the shinobi world and everything in it." Tsunade narrowed her eyes at Kitana and folded her hands on her desk. "What are you doing here?"

Kitana opened her mouth to speak, but Kiba cut her off. "She went after Sasuke. She went after him to bring him home."

Tsunade frowned again as she carefully looked over the mysterious young girl. "Is that so? And why, may I ask, would you want to do that? Why now?"

Kitana glanced at Kiba and brushed past him, strode across the room and faced the Hokage. "The way I see it, Lady Hokage, I was not in your service when I left this village. Therefore, I consider my actions my own and I believe they are of no one else's concern. What I _will_ tell you is that my journey has put something into clear perspective for me. I thought that distancing myself from the shinobi world would ease my pain and suffering. That it would somehow make my life easier. That I'd be better off staying far from it. But in doing so I allowed thing to happen that should never have occurred. It was my job to protect this village, the people in it, my comrades, the very people I cared about. And I turned my back on all of them. The truth is that I don't know how to begin making up for that, how to help correct the mistakes I have made, but I will do whatever it takes. That is why I'm here. If you'll let me, Lady Hokage, I want to be reinstated as a Hidden Leaf shinobi."

Lady Tsunade listened carefully all the while looking at Kitana intently. "Let there be no mistake. I am aware of your skill as a shinobi and word has reached me of the medical treatment you've been providing to the Leaf civilians. However, disloyalty is something that is not accepted from any of our shinobi. And neither is desertion," Tsunade spoke sternly.

Kitana nodded, lowered her eyes for a moment, only to fiercely face the Hokage with her midnight blue eyes. "With all due respect, Lady Hokage, but if I recall correctly, it wasn't all that long ago that you yourself were more than a little lost. And here you are today leading the village with its best interest at heart. It is that difficult for you off all people to believe that I have had a change of heart? That I want to redeem myself? That I am now more than ever prepared to do what it takes to serve and protect this village?"

The Hokage said nothing.

"Let there be no mistake about this either, Lady Hokage. I know I've abandoned the shinobi world. I know I've abandoned my comrades. And I understand that you may have certain reservations where it concerns me. But if you are willing to give me a second chance, I will not disappoint you." Kitana stood in front of Tsunade defiantly when the Hokage finally sighed, closed her eyes and nodded.

"Very well then, if this is what you want… We will discuss this later. The truth is we need all the forces we can get. But, do know that another slip up from your end will not be dealt with lightly," Tsunade stated sharply.

"Of course. Thank you, Lady Hokage," Kitana said softly as she bowed respectfully.

"Granny Tsunade…" Naruto started. "What did you mean by that? 'We need all the forces we can get'? Is the village in danger? Did something happen?"

Tsunade's eyes grew dark and Shizune, who had been standing tall beside her, quickly averted her eyes.

"Lady Tsunade?" Kakashi pressed.

"Jiraiya… was killed in battle," the Hokage stated slowly.

For moment the room was quiet as looks of shock and horror spread on the shinobi's faces. The Toad Sage had been such a formidable and legendary shinobi that none of them had even considered the possibility of someone defeating him, let alone killing him. Naruto was the first to speak.

"What did you say?" he asked, his voice slightly shaky.

Tsunade sighed. "Not too long ago, there was a rumor that the leader of the Akatsuki was hiding in the Hidden Rain Village. Jiraiya went to confirm whether or not this rumor was true."

Sakura gasped at this. "The leader of the Akatsuki is in Hidden Rain Village?"

"If I'm not mistaking, the Hidden Rain Village is a very recluse village that's quite hard to infiltrate," Sai uttered.

"Yes, but infiltration and intelligence gathering were Lord Jiraiya's specialties," Kakashi explained, his voice grave and his posture somewhat tensed.

"Exactly," Lady Tsunade confirmed. The pain in her eyes was unmistakable. It was clear for everyone to see she loved Jiraiya deeply. And that she was trying to the best of her ability to compose herself. Seeing this, Kitana felt incredibly guilty. And inadequate. If Lady Tsunade could get over her own feelings for the sake of the village, why was Kitana having such a hard time letting go of hers? In that moment Kita decided that she wouldn't let her emotions control her the way they had up until that point ever again. She would be strong and face whatever came at her head on. Exactly like she should have done all along.

Tsunade sighed again before continuing to speak. "Jiraiya stood face to face with Pain, the Akatsuki leader, but Pain was one of Jiraiya's former students."

"Student? How can that be?" Sakura stammered.

"It happened a long time ago, during the chaos of the Great Ninja War, in the Hidden Rain Village which had become a battlefield. Jiraiya was watching over some orphans who had no living relatives. To think that those kids would…" Tsunade's voice trailed off and she remained silent.

"Still, to corner such a great shinobi like Lord Jiraiya is… Just what the hell is this 'Pain'?" Kakashi asked no one in particular.

"He possesses the Rinnegan," was Tsunade's sole reply.

Kakashi's eyes shot wide open at that. "What did you say?!"

Hinata's eyes widened as well, Sai's eyes flickered briefly and the other shinobi merely stared at the Hokage dumbfounded.

"Rinnegan?" Sakura asked confusedly.

Shizune swallowed forcefully before she spoke. "The Rinnegan is a visual jutsu said to have been possessed by the Sage of the Six Paths, the forefather of all shinobi. I thought it was just a legend…"

Lady Tsunade continued. "The Rinnegan, the visual jutsu of legend. It's power reached far beyond anyone's imagination. What's more, there are six of them."

"Six people with the Rinnegan? How can that even be possible?" Yamato, who hadn't spoken for a while, muttered.

"There might be some trick behind it," Tsunade started. "Odds are that Jiraiya was the only one who knew it. However, during his battle with Pain, Jiraiya had his throat crushed and in the end, he left behind a message on the back of one of his toads before collapsing. Here it is," the Hokage said as she slid a sheet of paper over her desktop. The message read '9, 31, 8 106, 7 207, 15'.

"It's code," Kiba muttered.

"It was so Pain wouldn't notice it. There is no mistaking it," Tsunade replied gravely.

"What did Lord Jiraiya want to tell us? If we can decipher that code, only then will we know," Yamato wondered out loud.

"Granny," Naruto asked suddenly. "Were you the one who sent him?"

No one in the room spoke as they awaited the Hokage's answer. Tsunade frowned and her eyes grew darker than they already were. She closed them briefly and nodded. "Yes."

Naruto face contorted with rage and he clenched his fists as he addressed the Hokage. "Why did you let him do something so reckless?!" he snapped. "You knew him better than anyone! How the hell could you send him to such a dangerous place?!" Naruto yelled and moved to advance on Tsunade, but Kakashi raised a hand to stop him.

"Stop it, Naruto!" his sensei called out. "There's no one here who understands her feelings as much as you."

Tsunade's eyes flooded with pain as she lowered her head. Naruto squeezed his hands even tighter and turned away. "Damn it…" he growled lowly and headed to the door.

"Naruto! Where are you going?" Sakura called out after him.

Naruto stopped, his hand resting on the doorknob. "If Pervy Sage had been the Fifth Hokage, he would have never let Granny Tsunade do something so reckless. Never…" And with that he left the room.

"Naruto!" Sakura yelled again.

"Sakura… It's okay. Just let him be for a while," Tsunade assured her.

* * *

One by one the shinobi left the Fifth Hokage's office, each of them still astounded by the message that had just been delivered to them. Jiraiya, the Toad Sage, one of the Legendary Sannin, was dead. And although Kitana had never personally met him, that knowledge shook her to her core. Because this was yet another demonstration of the fact that it didn't matter how powerful you are, in the end anyone can die at any place at any time. Her parents had died, her sensei had died, Itachi had died. And even that treacherous snake Orochimaru had not been able to cheat death. Just as Kitana was thinking this, Lady Tsunade called out to her.

"Kitana, I would like to have a word with you," she stated.

Kiba glanced at Kitana quickly and squeezed her hand softly. "I'll be waiting right outside," he said with a reassuring smile and quickly left the room, closing the wooden doors behind him.

"Yes?" Kitana asked the Hokage, a little uneasy not knowing what the woman wanted with her.

"Earlier when I asked you why you went looking for Sasuke, you refused to answer. Why?" Tsunade inquired.

Kitana frowned. "Because I honestly believe that my reasons are mine and mine alone."

"I see," Tsunade started. "Before he left the village, before the slaughter of the Uchiha clan, you and Itachi were quite close, weren't you?"

"Yes, we were, but I don't see how any of this is relevant," Kitana protested.

"What he did to his clan is unforgivable, is it not? Even if he did let his little brother live, Sasuke has never been able to get over it. Yet, I've come to understand that after the massacre occurred you distanced yourself Sasuke, despite the special connection you had shared before. Why is that?"

Kitana grew more and more irritated. "What is up with all the questions?" she all but snapped at Tsunade.

Tsunade's eyes softened. "You loved them both. And now one of them has killed the other. I understand what it is like to see two people you care about going head to head. Orochimaru was my friend growing up, Jiraiya's as well, but as time passed he did things that could no longer be ignored. And when the time came we had no choice but stand against him. To stop him."

"I understand, Lady Hokage. And when the time comes, I will stand against _him_."

For a moment a flicker of confusion flashed across the Hokage's eyes, but she quickly understood what Kitana was referring to. "You intend to stop Sasuke?"

"By any means necessary," Kitana stated simply.

"And stop him from doing what?" Tsunade inquired. Kitana remained quiet.

Suddenly Tsunade stood up, walked up to Kitana and laid a hand on her shoulder. "You are trying hard, aren't you?"

Kitana looked at her confusedly. "I'm trying hard to do what?"

Tsunade grimaced. "To forget him. To stop loving as much as you do. To hate him as much as you think you should," she said knowingly. "But the truth is that at the end of the day, the only thing that can end suffering is love. The only way to bring Sasuke home is by showing him how much you still love him. By showing him that there is another way."

Kitana snorted. "Trust me when I say that ship has sailed," she said softly, her voice barely above a whisper. Tsunade shook her head.

"Does he know how you feel? How you _really_ feel?" she asked, her voice softer than it had been so far.

"Yes… But seemingly it wasn't enough. I wasn't enough," Kitana said, her eyes growing watery. She sniffed loudly and quickly regained her composure.

"See, I don't think you did. I believe you went out there to stop him from killing Itachi. Am I right?" Tsunade guessed. Kitana merely crossed her arms and remained quiet. Tsunade resumed. "And I also believe you told him that. I even believe that you told him that you love him and that if he loved you, he would spare his brother's life. But what I really believe is that you should have told Sasuke how you feel about _him_, regardless of everything that has happened, could happen or will happen. Regardless of Itachi or anyone else. I believe he needs to know that no matter what he does, he can always come home to you. I believe he needs to know that your love for him is unconditional."

Kitana grimaced. "But it's not. My love for him isn't unconditional. I can't forgive him for what he did."

Tsunade smiled softly. "You can. And you will. I can see it in your eyes. Don't fight it. Love like that doesn't happen very often and when it does, don't let go of it. But more importantly, don't let a day go by without letting the ones you love know how much you love them."

The Hokage's eyes grew dark and she lowered her head as she turned away from Kitana. Kitana sighed at the realization that Tsunade hadn't just been talking about Sasuke. The woman was obviously in pain. And although she seemed to be keeping it all together, Kitana could see now exactly how far from the truth that was.

"Lady Hokage, I'm so sorry about Lord Jiraiya," Kitana said and placed a comforting hand on Tsunade's shoulder. "You never told him, did you?"

"It doesn't matter now," Tsunade said softly and remained silent for a few moments. She then turned to face Kitana. "Word has it that you have great potential as a medic."

"I like to think that I do," Kitana replied a bit taken aback.

"If you want," the Hokage started, "I could teach you a thing or two about being a medic out on the battlefield. You'll have the opportunity to learn from the best, if I may say so myself."

Kitana narrowed her eyes reluctantly. "Are you asking me to be your pupil?"

Tsunade nodded. "Yes, I am. You didn't get to finish your training under the Third Hokage, so I believe it is my responsibility to make up for that."

Kitana smiled softly, but nevertheless shook her head. "Please forgive me, Lady Tsunade, but I cannot accept your very kind offer. Although I am honored and very humbled by your offer, I have had a sensei once, _your_ sensei in fact, and I don't have the heart to take on another one. Hiruzen-sensei meant a great deal to me and because of that he can't be replaced."

At that the Hokage laughed. "You are awfully loyal for a deserter. Very well, have it your way. But just in case you change mind, know what my door is always open."

* * *

"I would like to propose a toast," Kiba declared, "to Kitana's homecoming! Here's to friendship, loyalty and second chances! May we go on many missions together!"

"Cheers!" his friends called out in unison. After leaving the Hokage's office the young shinobi had decided to have a get-together in celebration of Kitana's reinstatement. And so they had headed downtown ordering themselves a few rounds of drinks. Although most of the Rookies had gathered, Naruto was nowhere to be found. Not that anyone blamed him. Everyone knew how much the Toad Sage had meant to him.

Just as her friends proceeded to take a sip from their drinks, Kitana intervened. "While we're at it, I'd like to add something on a less cheerful note. I'd like to take a moment to remember the people who don't get to be here with us, for whatever reasons. To remember lost friends and family and comrades. And to being grateful for each and every person sitting at this table. I'm grateful for all of you, two of you in particular," Kitana said with a nod at Tenten, but rested her eyes finally at Kiba.

"To remembering," Shikamaru said as he raised his glass. It wasn't hard to see he was thinking of Asuma Sarutobi, his sensei who had died only a few months earlier.

"To remembering," the others pitched in. For a few moments all was quiet, but it didn't take Ino and Sakura long to engage in their usual chattering. After a few minutes all the shinobi were laughing, talking and joking. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Everyone but Kitana. She just sat there quietly sipping her drink when Kiba turned to her.

"You don't look like you're having a particularly good time…" he posed.

"I'm not. But not due to lack of trying from your part. I really do appreciate all of this, but… it's too soon. Just give me a few days and I'll be fine. I promise."

"If you say so," Kiba responded reluctantly.

"Thank you, Kiba," Kitana said as she looked deeply into Kiba's amber eyes. Her friend looked at her inquisitively. "For what?" he asked, surprise evident in his voice.

Kitana gave him a small smile. "For not giving up on me. For being here. For everything. For, even after all this time and everything that has happened, having my back. I don't know how to begin explaining how much that means to me, Kiba. How much you mean to me."

"I'm always going to be there for you, Kitana. If you'll let me," Kiba answered, softly squeezing her hand. They had sat like that for a while, observing the others, enjoying each other's company, when Sakura suddenly chimed from across the table.

"Hottie alert! Something tasty just walked in," she said, her eyes glistening in excitement. The girls of the group turned towards the door to see a few young men enter the bar, led by a handsome guy who scanned the room looking for an empty table.

"Uhm, Sakura, aren't you supposed to be madly in love with Sasuke? It certainly didn't take you very long to get over him," Sai uttered. The moment he did, Sakura's smile fell. Sai frowned. "I said something insensitive again, didn't I?"

"You think?" Shikamaru said sarcastically and he took another huge swig from his drink.

As soon as Sai had mentioned Sasuke, Kiba glanced sideward at Kitana. Her face hardened as she involuntarily pulled away from Kiba and crossed her arms. Kiba let out a low, frustrated growl. He was well aware of the difficulty Sai had dealing with people, but this was one ill-timed comment Kiba could not appreciate. Just as he had the feeling Kitana was enjoying herself, that she was moving on, something happened that immediately took her back to that dark place.

Ino frowned as well, but when her eyes once again fell on the young man at the entrance she smiled and started waving at him. Sakura frantically pulled Ino's hand down and hissed at the blonde kunoichi.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Sakura snarled with a glare. Ino giggled. "Don't worry, I know him!" her friend assured her.

"Hey! Kyo!" Ino called out to the guy that had just walked in. The young man looked around, seeing who had called his name, and when he saw Ino he smiled, briefly conversed with his friends and came her way.

"Ino… Hey. Long time no see," the boy replied as he walked up to their table.

"You bet!" Ino replied with a giggle. "Everyone, this is Kyo. We are old friends. Kyo, these are my buds," she said as she motioned to her comrades. The Shinobi around the table welcomed Ino's friend with kind greetings, smiles and friendly waves. Kitana, however, made no effort to acknowledge his presence.

"It wouldn't kill you to smile, would it?" Kyo asked with a meaningful look directed at Kitana. Kitana glanced at him from the corner of her eye and scanned him quickly. He had a medium height, a sturdy physique, honey blond hair and a striking pair of green eyes. He gazed at her curiously and smirked playfully.

"Has it occurred to your brilliant mind that perhaps I don't have much of a reason to smile?" she rebutted. For a few moments Kyo said nothing, but looked at Kitana intently.

"He just wants you to be happy, you know," Kyo said softly, his eyes gentle and a soft smile gracing his lips as he dug his hands into his pockets.

"Excuse me?" Kita inquired, raising an eyebrow as she looked at him confusedly.

"The guy you loved. And lost. He wouldn't want you to be sad for him. He wants you to be strong and move on and do something incredible with your life. He wants you to reach your full potential and to make up for all of the time you've lost already. To rise up above who you've been so far and shine like the star he always knew you were. He doesn't want you do mourn him forever. He cared for you too much," Kyo stated. Kitana looked at him dumbfounded.

"Who the hell do you think you are? What makes you think that you can just walk over here and assume a bunch of things?" Kita snapped while sliding back her chair and getting to her feet as her friends anxiously followed the scene unraveling before them. "You don't know anything about me!"

Kyo smirked. "You think?" he asked playfully.

"O, I know you don't!" Kita insisted, putting her hands on her hips defiantly.

"Okay, let's calm down for a second," Kiba interrupted as he stood up as well and laid a hand on Kita's shoulder. "She's been really emotional lately. You'll have to forgive her for being a… " Kiba started apologetically.

"A what?" Kitana demanded as she scowled at her friend.

"A bitch! You're being a complete and total bitch! The poor guy just met you and he's already on to you being a complete basket case!"

"Well, I _am_ at an unfair advantage," Kyo admitted with a shrug. "I happen to have a knack for reading people."

"Really?" Kita chuckled. "So you think you can _decode_ me? Give me your best shot," she challenged him as she shifted her weight to her right leg and crossed her arms demonstratively. Kiba let out an exasperated growl and fell back into his seat. What was he supposed to about this girl?

"Very well then," Kyo started with a smirk. "You are a strong person with a strong heart, a strong body, a strong mind and strong sense of loyalty. But you also have a strong tendency to hold strong grudges that is based in your need to hold onto things. It's difficult for you to let go of people, emotions, ideas. And that's understandable considering how much you've lost. In order to protect yourself and others you've distanced yourself from other people, in hopes of finding some peace, some sort of redemption. But you didn't find it in solitude, did you? Being alone didn't help you in chasing away the ghosts of your past, it didn't help you in obtaining a clearer sense of your future. The only thing it did was keep you away from the people you loved, the people you needed, the people that needed you. And in the end you couldn't help being drawn to them again. That's because you're the kind of person that can never sever a bond once you've started loving another person, no matter what that person does. Once you start loving someone you can never really stop. But you know that. It's why you're in so much pain now. But I'll let you in on a little secret," Kyo said as he closed in on her conspiringly. "You'll be just fine. As long as you allow the people around you to help you, that is."

For a moment Kitana merely squinted at the young man standing before her, however, it didn't take long for a smile to tug on her lips.

"You know what? I kind of like you," she smirked and extended her hand to him. "Kitana Izanaki," she introduced herself.

"Kyo Yamanaka," he responded as he took her hand and shook it. When Kitana heard his name, she gasped for a moment and then erupted in a loud, sincere laugh.

"You have got to be kidding me?! A mind reader from the Yamanaka clan? And you call that an _unfair advantage_?!" she chuckled.

Kyo shrugged. "Hey, if you got it, flaunt it!" he rebutted with a wink. "Anyway, it was nice meeting all of you, but I have to go join my friends," he continued as he pointed to the young men he walked in with and were now sitting at a table on the other side of the room.

"Well, it was good seeing you," Ino said as she stood up to hug Kyo before he turned to join his comrades. After having taken a few steps, Kyo turned around and looked directly at Kitana. "All joking aside, I meant what I said. You will be fine."

"Well," Kitana answered with a grimace. "You're the psychic. I'll have to take your word for it."


End file.
